Silk reviewed in Selvedge Magazine

This is an authoritative, detailed, well-illustrated book on all aspects of silk, its history and use, the science of its production, and the globalisation of the silk industry. It is an excellent reference book which should be invaluable in any university textile department. There is a wealth of information for the textile enthusiast outside of academia and, although the chapter on Sericulture and the appendix The Science of Silk are rather specialised, the general reader will find much to enjoy.

Shelagh Vainker’s book Chinese Silk: A Cultural History explored the role of silk as currency, its production and use mainly within China but Schoeser widens the brief to look at the global expansion of the industry from the Neolithic period to the present day. The history chapter is a fascinating account of the silk routes by land and sea and how silk was traded by the Chinese to Ancient Rome and beyond. It is not generally realised that each merchant trade only with settlements either side of his own domain, so the Romans had no knowledge of China, nor the Chinese of the world beyond their boundaries.

The geographic spread and the development of the silk industry throughout Europe and the United States is well documented and illustrated. The dispersal of techniques and skills, often along the same silk routes, together with the advances in machinery and dyes expanded the silk industry world wide. The account is brought up to date with descriptions of how haute couture designers and fine artists use silk as an artistic canvas and this is where the lavish colour photographs really excel. Norma Starszakowna’s work is featured and her permanent silk installations in the Scottish Parliament building are illustrated.

Bruno Marcandalli in the chapter The Future of Silk relates how science and technology could be used to modify the production of the cocoon to create more than just a beautiful textile, and the possibilities are extraordinary. The silk worm, one of only two insects successfully domesticated by man, may yet prove to be even more valuable in the future than in the past.

Kate Woodhead