Cross-body leather bags were first used during Roman times, and were carried by legionaries as part of their luggage – they were known as ‘loculus’, which translates from Latin as ‘little place’. Thought to have been used by the soldiers to carry their personal belongings and any rations they might need, the loculus measured roughly 45x30cm, and was probably made from goat hide. About as far removed from the classic leather satchels of today as you can get, they were purely practical, finished with bronze rings – and usually carried on a shoulder pole.
Evidence gathered from archaeological remains and poetry shows that satchels next popped up around 300AD, on the shoulders of monks bringing Christianity to Scotland. Similarly to their use in Roman times, the leather bags were chosen for their practicality, and would have allowed the easy transportation of heavy religious texts to spread the world of God. Fragments discovered by historians have indicated that these bags were fairly large, and could have held such works as ‘The Book of Kells’, one of the most famous Christian manuscripts from this period. Book satchels are regarded as incredibly important during this time, as they played a vital role in Scotland’s conversion to Christianity.
Fast forward to 1914, and the outbreak of the First World War, and satchel-style bags make another appearance – this time often made from canvas rather than leather. Known as a ‘haversack’, it was a basic , highly functional bag with a flap that folded over the top, and would have been used to carry smaller items such as a knife, personal items, water, and up to four days worth of unused rations. They reappeared again during the Second World War, but the satchel as we know it today made an appearance back on the home front, often in the arms of evacuees as they boarded the train to a safer environment. Large leather satchels, often almost as big as the child that carried it, would be packed with lunch for the journey, and often books and items of comfort.
Leather satchels continued their rise in popularity, appearing throughout the middle of the twentieth century as leather school bags, and then exploded back onto the fashion scene in 2005. Here at Scaramanga we pioneered bring back traditional leather satchels back to life with a minimum of modern tweaks in 2006.
Our founder Carl discovered an old satchel in a dusty bazaar in the frontier town of Jaisalmer in 1999. After using it for several years he decided to return to India to find skilled artesans remake the satchel. Our favourites are the versions that honour the bag’s beginnings, but still manage to stand their own amongst modern day styles and trends.
Our range is made up of three distinct bags. Our oldest is the 15in satchel with a handy top handle and front pocket. The design is one of our oldest and has changed very little in 18 years since it was launched as our first satchel in 2006. It is big enough for everything you will need for a day. It has been equally popular with men and women who typically use it as a day-bag. Now made from a durable Hunter leather which has a more natural finish which ages to a used-vintage look.
Five years ago we designed a new leather briefcase with the classic satchel straps, buckles, top handle and half-flap. Our Hamilton laptop bag has been fabricated for all the rigours of work and communting. The flap is secured with slip-locks for easy-access, there's a padded laptop compartment, back strap to keep this bag secured to your luggage and an extra strong top-handle. Inside you'll get two compartments, plus a padded sleeve to keep your laptop protected and secure. The others can be used for documents, files, cables or any other essentials you need for daily use. Like all our bags our satchel are hand made by skilled leather artesans in India. They use traditional tools and techniques.
A couple of years ago we launched our leather and canvas satchel that combined the vintage look of our Hunter leather with the durability of quality waxed canvas to create a light-weight satchel. With a nod to the canvas bags used by the Swedish army in the 1940's the satchel's hard-wearing materials and handmade construction make it a bag that ages-well while allowing its contents to be well organised.
The humble leather satchel has seen many incarnations over the centuries. The Romans, then more recently they were used as utilitarian school bags in the middle of the last century. Just after the turn of the 21st century they were caterpulted into mainstream fashion. They were available in dozens of colours, sizes and styles. Scaramanga were early pioneers and although we have diversified into other styles of bags, we still handmake three different styles that are inspired by the early bags we made in 2006.
