** A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK **<\/b><\/p>\n
‘Fascinating . . . The history of the world through the eye of a needle . . . I recommend this book to anyone’ <\/b>THE SPECTATOR
‘A charming, absorbing and history that takes us on a journey from the silk roads to sportswear, from ruffs to spacesuits . . . I devoured this quietly feminist book’ <\/b>SUNDAY TIMES
‘Joyful and beautiful’<\/b> NATURE
‘<\/i>Will make you rethink your relationship with fabric’ <\/b>ELLE DECORATION<\/p>\n
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<\/b> wrappings of Tutankhamun’s mummy actually meant; from the Silk<\/b> Roads to the woollen<\/b> sails that helped the Vikings reach America 700 years before Columbus; from the lace<\/b> ruffs that infuriated the puritans to the Indian calicoes<\/b> and chintzes<\/b> that powered the Industrial Revolution, our continuing reinvention of cloth tells fascinating stories of human ingenuity. <\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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 <\/i>offers an unforgettable adventure through our past, present and future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
From the mummies of Ancient Egypt; via the silken dragon robes of Imperial China and the woollen sails of Viking longboats to the Indian calicoes and chintzes that powered the Industrial Revolution (and sparked more than one war); arriving finally at the lab-blended fibres that have allowed astronauts to moonwalk – fabrics, manmade and natural, have changed and shaped the world we live in. In 13 fascinating chapters, Kassia St Clair lays out an alternative history of civilisation and human creativity. Wittily written and compellingly argued, this title will change the way you see the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[1205],"product_tag":[1837,24188,2880,5205,5953,26044,5818,5061,26043,26042],"class_list":["post-103085","product","type-product","status-publish","product_cat-crafts","product_tag-fashion-textiles-design","product_tag-history-of-art-design-styles-c-1400-to-c-1600","product_tag-history-of-art-design-styles-c-1600-to-c-1800","product_tag-history-of-art-ancient-classical-artbce-to-c-500-ce","product_tag-history-of-fashion","product_tag-industrial-commercial-art-design","product_tag-needlework-fabric-crafts","product_tag-society-culture-general","product_tag-textile-artworks-tapestries-hangings-quilts","product_tag-textile-design-theory","pa_book_author-clair-kassia-st","pa_cover-paperback","pa_dewey-677-009-edition23","pa_imprint-john-murray","pa_language-english","pa_pages-xii-352","pa_publisher-hodder-arnold","pa_readership-general-trade-code-k","first","onbackorder","taxable","shipping-taxable","purchasable","product-type-simple"],"yoast_head":"\n