Based on many years of study of a huge range of fabrics produced by hand or by strictly limited mechanization‎,‎ this book‎'‎s essential strength is its universality‎:‎ For the first time‎,‎ whether the purpose of study is an aspect of design‎,‎ history‎,‎ or cultural significance‎,‎ and regardless of its scope chronologically or geographically‎,‎ a definition of the actual structural makeup of fabrics and their component parts is clear and accessible to all‎.‎ Unlike process‎,‎ social context‎,‎ or symbolic function‎,‎ structure is ‎- with negligible exceptions ‎- always determinable‎;‎ it can be objectively observed‎;‎ and it is varied enough for significant grouping and sub‎-grouping‎.‎ In this monumental work‎,‎ moreover‎,‎ the structures‎,‎ and the descriptive terms applied to them‎,‎ are clearly presented according to their logical relationships to each other‎,‎ generally moving from the simplest to the most complex‎.‎ Illustrated with specially constructed and photographed examples made from cotton string and with extant fabrics from different cultures‎,‎ the bo‎.‎‎.‎‎.‎