Fabric: The Hidden History of the Material World

by Victoria Finlay

There are only six remaining Tahitian Chief Mourner costumes in the world and the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter has one of them.

Must go and see this

often spun and woven in Dundee. At the time, Britain and Russia had an alliance against France. But peace never lasted long and British prime minister William Pitt the Younger was nervous. Russia had invaded the Crimea nine years earlier, taking partial control of the Black Sea and Pitt could see friction ahead. He wanted to reduce Britain’s dependence on Russian raw materials. He was keen to explore the possibilities of jute.

History repeats itself