Falling for fish skin bags hook, line and sinker

By R. Agus Bakti

YOGYAKARTA (JP): The ray fish is one of Indonesia's many marine riches. Apart from its delicious meat, its skin is a special material that can be made into numerous useful items, like wallets, bags, belts and key and pager holders.

Like leather, the skin must be tanned before it can be utilized. But not all parts of the fish, locally known as ikan pari, can be used. Only the skin of its back, which has spots like beads, can be used, according to Nuraini Indrati, a lecturer at the Leather Technology Academy in Yogyakarta.

The tanned skin is durable, flexible, supple and more importantly it will not be damaged by bacteria.

There are a number of types of ray fish in Indonesian waters: the Gymmura micoura (pari kampret), the Amphotitius kuhlir (pari kembang), the Actubatic nari-nari (pari burung), the Dasyattis sephen (pari ayam) and Trygon sehen (pari kelapa). The pari kelapa is one of the types whose skin can be tanned.

Local fishermen usually use the skin as sandpaper, while in Japan the skin is used to make shields.

The tanning process is not much different from the method used to tan other types of skin. There are three stages to the process: (1) the preliminary process, or beam-house operation, involving the process of soaking, liming, deliming, bating and pickling; (2) the tanning process and (3) the finishing process, comprising neutralizing, dyeing, oiling and final dyeing.

After tanning, the skin can be used to make bags as well as wallets. The spots on the surface of the skin make it special, setting it apart from the leather generally available in the market. It is distinctive from cow, sheep, reptile and snake leather.

In the evening, the fish skin resembles a pearl. It shines when the light strikes it, bringing out the unique designs of the leather.

The tanned fish skin is equal in beauty to other types of leather. The surface is hard and the fish scales resemble a the teeth of a saw.

Another beautiful aspect of the fish skin is the spots on the skin which resemble pearls. The shapes vary, making each design unique. It is impossible to add spots to the skin and any attempt to do so will mar the beauty of the skin.

These pearl-like spots determine the selling price of the goods made from the skin. The spots are centered on the surface of the skin, and the more large spots in the center the higher the value of the final product.

The spots on the skin of these fish which "fly" on the surface of the sea cannot be designed by people, and it depends on the fishermen's catch whether the fish have the characteristic spots.

The original color of the skin is grayish white, but other colors can be added to the skin during the tanning process, depending only on the tanner. Colors often used are green, yellow, blue, black and brown. However, no matter the color the leather remains shiny.

Indrati said that as a lecturer, she felt responsible for disseminating the technology necessary to popularize the tanning of ray fish skin. However, she is not involved in the business.

Few people, in fact, are involved in this particular endeavor. One such person is Budi Laharjo, who has been tanning ray fish skins for the past two years. He said it was difficult to sew the fish skin. When making wallets, the part of the leather to be sewn must be marked beforehand, otherwise the needle can break during sewing because it can come into contact with a tough spot.

Budi sells a bag for up to Rp 400,000 and wallets for Rp 75,000 each. He sells his goods in shops in Jakarta, Surabaya and Yogyakarta.

In developing his business, he consults with the Leather Agency in Yogyakarta, particularly on matters of standardization.

The raw material is acquired from fishermen on Java's northern coast. The price differs according to the size of the fish. Some skins are priced at Rp 15,000 a sheet, others go for as much as Rp 40,000 a sheet.

Budi says that this business has good prospects. He is convinced there are many more sources of ray fish in the country, especially in eastern Indonesia.