{"product_id":"the-fabric-of-civilization-how-textiles-made-the-world","title":"The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e“A journey as epic and varying as the Silk Road itself...[\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Fabric of Civilization\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e is] like a swatch of a Florentine Renaissance brocade: carefully woven, the technique precise, the colors a mix of shade and shine and an accurate representation of the whole cloth” (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe 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.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Fabric of Civilization\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, 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.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAssiduously researched and deftly narrated, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Fabric of Civilization\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e tells the story of the world's most influential commodity.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAuthored by Virginia Postrel\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSoft Cover\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003e320 Pages\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDimensions: 5.45 x 1.85 x 8.25 inches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublished by: Basic Books (December 7, 2021)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Hachette","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54035045777603,"sku":"22401","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0501\/7881\/8243\/files\/91J6ArYCwmL._SL1500.jpg?v=1781719322","url":"https:\/\/store.hillwoodmuseum.org\/products\/the-fabric-of-civilization-how-textiles-made-the-world","provider":"Hillwood Museum Shop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}