Goldbeater's skin
Goldbeater's skin (Goldschlägerhaut, baudruche) is flattened intestinal membrane, used in England for a time to make balloon fabric.
Goldbeater's skin, which is so called owing to its having been used for beating gold into thin sheets, is used in England for making the envelopes of balloons. These skins are about 36 inches by 10 inches; they are very light and hold the gas well without needing to be specially varnished. They are laid in layers, one upon the other, sometimes as many as eight being used. Twenty-five square feet of the skin weigh about 1 ounce, and would probably be used in layers of five. Unfortunately they are extremely expensive, and not very suitable for continuous exposure to the weather. There is, however, an advantage in using balloons of this type in colonial wars, partly because they are very light, and partly because the tendency to develop leaks is slight. Seeing that under such conditions the generation of gas, to make good any leakage, would be a difficult matter, it will be evident that this advantage is worth paying for.[1]
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| Enclosing categories | Fabric |
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| Subcategories | |
| Keywords | Balloon |
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