Saddlery, leather goods, bags, pouches, boots, shoes and even saddles, leather and leather goods are the main protagonists in the province and enjoy a well-deserved fame for their quality and a well-deserved reputation for their quality and adaptation to the new times.
The localities of the Montes de Toledo preserve workshops in which the intense smell of tanned leather the intense smell of the tanned leather is the atmosphere of the work that has quality as its hallmark.
Las Ventas with Peña Aguilera, Los Navalmorales, Consuegra, Urda, San Pablo de los Montes, Cuerva, Talavera de la Reina, Santa Cruz de la Zarza and Madridejos are some of the localities that work with leather and fur offering products of daily use that have an extraordinary added value.
Leather craftsmanship has been present in this province since the arrival of the Arabs to Toledo, and since the 8th century it has been an important trade for the inhabitants of the aforementioned municipalities. However, it was not until the 17th century that this craft developed and acquired great popular roots, which led to a double trend: on the one hand, the emergence of the trade of “saddler” related to those pieces made of leather for horses, i.e. all types of saddlery harnesses, horse bridles, saddlebags, saddle bags, etc., and on the other hand, the “saddler’s leather saddle”, which is a trade that is very popular in the province of Toledo, and on the other hand, the “saddlery” dedicated to the manufacture of leather pieces for hunting and clothing accessories such as belts, wallets, bags, jackets, waistcoats, holsters, shotgun cases, bags, etc. Therefore, the leather craft workshops in this province, dedicated to both crafts, will acquire great relevance thanks to the activity that arose in the 19th century with the charcoal makers and carters and later, especially from the middle of the 20th century, with the appearance of hunting as a hunting activity, which will lead to this craft knowledge that had been passed down over time from father to son, This has been especially developed and has now become an important socio-economic driving force in the province, where there are many leather and fur shops and craft workshops and cooperatives in the sector, which have led to this traditional trade being passed on from adult craftsmen to young people initiated in leather craftsmanship, thus ensuring the survival of a trade of yesteryear in the 21st century.
