Fabric of Civilization

How Textiles Made the World

by

320 pages

English language

Published April 7, 2020 by Basic Books.

ISBN:
978-1-5416-1760-5
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5 stars (4 reviews)

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.

4 editions

reviewed The Fabric of Civilization by Virginia Postrel

Who knew that purple smelled so bad!

5 stars

I never really pondered how much work it would be to spin all the thread needed to make all the fabric that was used before the industrial revolution. I never pondered how weird it would be to dye fabric with shellfish. There was so much I hadn't considered! This book opened my eyes to the history of textiles, fabric, and how changes in technology have helped (and hurt) us so much. This book also changed my relationship with clothing; for the better! Very good stuff.

reviewed The Fabric of Civilization by Virginia Postrel

Who knew that purple smelled so bad!

5 stars

I never really pondered how much work it would be to spin all the thread needed to make all the fabric that was used before the industrial revolution. I never pondered how weird it would be to dye fabric with shellfish. There was so much I hadn't considered! This book opened my eyes to the history of textiles, fabric, and how changes in technology have helped (and hurt) us so much. This book also changed my relationship with clothing; for the better! Very good stuff.

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