Scraping furs

"I saw how reindeer hides were processed by my aunt Raia Meshcheriakova. The hide was stretched out on a board, and the aut was used to remove the fat. The aut is a hard scraping tool that not only removes remaining bits of flesh and fat from the hide, but also softens it. This technique requires patience and physical strength. We live near reindeer herders. They use manialo, reindeer droppings, in hide processing. The Itelmens, on the other hand, used dried fish roe to process hides – especially the prized parts of the hide from the legs of the reindeer. The roe was softened in water and then spread over the hide. As the roe layer was scraped off, the hide became soft – this was part of the tanning process. Today, this method of hide preparation has largely been forgotten. People no longer really know how to use dried fish roe properly, and so it’s no longer preserved. Women prepared the hides this way and sewed clothing from them, especially for winter. To keep their hair out of the way while working, they would braid it. In earlier times, women often wore braids, and once they reached adulthood, they would braid two."