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Textiles and weavers in medieval South India
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1985
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Medieval SocietyArt HistoryMaterial CultureTextile ArchaeologyTextile ScienceMedieval South IndiaTextile IndustryEngineeringBusinessTextile ManagementWoven TextilesWeavingTextile StructuresCultural HistoryTextile DesignComprehensive HistoryEconomic HistoryTextile Development
The South Indian textile industry, dating back over 3,000 years, has substantial historical records only for the medieval period, which Dr Ramaswamy studies across seven centuries of weaving communities. This work aims to produce a comprehensive history of South Indian textiles and weavers from the 10th to the 17th centuries, focusing on their status, role, and economic and technological contexts. The authors compile a narrative that integrates social, economic, and technological aspects of medieval weaving communities to provide a holistic historical account.
The South Indian textile industry goes back more than 3,000 years. Substantial historical data on textiles and weavers is, however, available only for the medieval period. The focus of this work is the period from the tenth to the seventeenth centuries. Dr Ramaswamy studies the vicissitudes of the medieval weaving communities and the textile industry spasmodically over 700 years. Her attempt has been to write a comprehensive history, so that this book is as concerned with the status and role of weavers in medieval society as with the economic and technological aspects of their world.