The Fabric of Civilization
- Author Virginia Postrel
- Narrator Caroline Turner Cole
- Publisher Hachette Audio
- Publish Date 17 February 2026
- Run Time 9 hours and 43 minutes
- Format Audio
- Genre Ancient history, Apparel, garment and textile industries, Engineering applications of polymers and composites, European history, Fashion and beauty industries, General and world history, History of other geographical groupings and regions, Plastics and polymers, Textiles and fibres.
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What to expect
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.
| Author | Virginia Postrel |
|---|---|
| Narrator | Caroline Turner Cole |
| Duration | 9 hours and 43 minutes |
| Release Date | |
| ISBN | 9781668658178 |
| Format | Audiobook |
| Publisher | Hachette Audio |
| Genre | Ancient history, Apparel, garment and textile industries, Engineering applications of polymers and composites, European history, Fashion and beauty industries, General and world history, History of other geographical groupings and regions, Plastics and polymers, Textiles and fibres |
| Availability | US |
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