PublishedJohn Murray, October 2018 |
ISBN9781473659032 |
FormatHardcover, 368 pages |
Dimensions22.2cm × 16.3cm × 3.7cm |
All textiles begin with a twist. From colourful 30,000-year old threads found on the floor of a Georgian cave to what the linen wrappings of Tutankhamun's mummy actually meant; from the Silk Roads to the woollen sails that helped the Vikings reach America 700 years before Columbus; from the lace ruffs that infuriated the puritans to the Indian calicoes and chintzes that powered the Industrial Revolution, our continuing reinvention of cloth tells fascinating stories of human ingenuity.
When we talk of lives hanging by a thread, being interwoven, or part of the social fabric, we are part of a tradition that stretches back many thousands of years. Fabric has allowed us to achieve extraordinary things and survive in unlikely places, and this book shows you how -- and why. With a cast that includes Chinese empresses, Richard the Lionheart and Bing Crosby, Kassia St Clair takes us on the run with escaped slaves, climbing the slopes of Everest and moonwalking with astronauts. Running like a bright line through history, The Golden Thread offers an unforgettable adventure through our past, present and future.
Bill is one of the founders of Boffins and has been involved in selecting the books we stock since our beginning in 1989. His favourite reading is history, with psychology, current affairs, and business books coming close behind. His hobbies are reading, food, reading, drinking, reading, and sleeping.
Now this is an offbeat topic for a history book, but so interesting. Most of us don’t think much about the influence of fabric in history. You’ll be introduced to the origins of weaving, to the wrapping of Egyptian mummies, silk in Ancient China – and the cities of the silk road that it built, the woollen sails of the Viking ships, the cotton trade, right through to rayon and modern fabrics used for space travel, sports clothes and extreme cold. You’ll come away from this book surprised by how important fabrics have been in history.
