Archaeological leather is most often found waterlogged from a long stay underground, and heavily soiled. Cleaning operations aim at eliminating earthen residues, metallic particles - especially iron - and calcareous concretions. If the former do not resist to washing with a detergent solution, metallic and calcareous impurities demand the use of chemical treatments. A study of the efficiency and innocuousness of various substances proposed for archaeological leather cleansing was undertaken to determine the most appropriate methods. The authors selected a non-ionic surfactant, an ampholyte for superficial cleaning, and a citrate of ammonium for the complexation of iron. -- AATA