thongs

Narrow strips of tanned, oil-tanned or alum-tawed skin used for a variety of purposes in bookbindings, such as sewing supports, endband cores, ties, etc. Although the terms 'thongs' and 'tapes' are very similar in meaning, thongs are typically thicker than tapes made from animal skins. Therefore a length of thin animal skin used for the secondary braiding of an endband should be described as a tape rather than a thong.