Educational Summary about Protective Gloves:
It has been suggested that the origin of protective gloves dates back to prehistoric times when early cavemen, prior to the Glacial Period (which is generally regarded as having commenced some 240,000 years ago), wore gloves, fashioned from animal skins, to protect their hands and arms from injury when they hunted. There is evidence that much later, in classical times, gloves were used by the ancient Persians and Greeks to protect their hands against the cold and thorns, as well as in warfare and sport, not only for protection, but also as weapons of offence. In the early Middle Ages the wearing of gloves, other than for protective purposes, was largely confined to the nobility, clergy and military for whom they were largely seen as status symbols. It was not until the 16th century that gloves came to be worn as a fashion item, by both sexes, and increasingly across the social spectrum. The popularity of gloves as a fashion accessory continued to grow down the centuries to the extent that, by 1920, English glove manufacturers were producing 25 million pairs of fabric gloves per annum, thereby completely overshadowing the use of protective gloves.  This summary is from the British Glove Association.  If you want to learn more about gloves, we suggest you visit their site and join their association.