Studies in Primitive Looms

Textile production has long been a subject of interest to the practical craft enthusiast and to the anthropologist, in whose field it is considered one of the most complex areas to describe. The author of "Studies in Primitive Looms", H. Ling Roth was not only an anthropologist of note bu also a practical man. his working life was spent in the West Yorkshire woolen trade, but his overriding hobby was the study of textile appliances from all cultures and all periods. That he succeeded in producing a book of considerable importance is illustrated by the fact that it has not been superseded by any other work since it first appeared in 1918. The text and the illustrations are perhaps dated, but the facts and the conclusions are as fresh and as important as ever. The book will be of particular interest to anyone working on handmade textiles. Students of anthropology, who should also have a knowledge of cloth production, must include it in their reading.