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From Neanderthal string to 3D knitting, an “expansive” global history that highlights “how textiles truly changed the world” (Wall Street Journal)
The story of humanity is the story of textiles—as old as civilization itself. Since the first thread was spun, the need for textiles has driven technology, business, politics, and culture.
In The Fabric of Civilization, Virginia Postrel synthesizes groundbreaking research from archaeology, economics, and science to reveal a surprising history. From Minoans exporting wool colored with precious purple dye to Egypt, to Romans arrayed in costly Chinese silk, the cloth trade paved the crossroads of the ancient world. Textiles funded the Renaissance and the Mughal Empire; they gave us banks and bookkeeping, Michelangelo’s David and the Taj Mahal. The cloth business spread the alphabet and arithmetic, propelled chemical research, and taught people to think in binary code.
Assiduously researched and deftly narrated, The Fabric of Civilization tells the story of the world’s most influential commodity.
From the Publisher
Publisher : Basic Books (December 7, 2021)
Language : English
Paperback : 320 pages
ISBN-10 : 1541617622
ISBN-13 : 978-1541617629
Item Weight : 9.6 ounces
Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.25 inches
Customers say
Customers enjoy the book’s engaging content and thorough history of textiles. They find the information well-researched and illuminating. The book is described as a highly readable and engaging read with excellent glossary and index. Readers appreciate the narrative storytelling and anecdotes that provide narrative interest among highly technical details.
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