The Saturday Magazine, No. 65, July 6th, 1833

audiobook

The Saturday Magazine, No. 65, July 6th, 1833

by Various Authors

EN·~53 minutes·8 chapters

Chapters

8 total
1

THE SATURDAY MAGAZINE.

0:12
2

THE HISTORY AND CULTURE OF SILK.

16:26
3

NARRATIVE OF A SAILOR LEFT ON AN ISLAND IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN.

17:19
4

ON THE SIGNS OF THE SEASONS IN RURAL PURSUITS.

7:15
5

THE GREAT BELL OF MOSCOW.

4:13
6

ANECDOTE OF THE LATE BENJAMIN WEST, PRESIDENT OF THE ROYAL ACADEMY.

2:17
7

ANNIVERSARIES IN JULY. - MONDAY, 8th.

5:05
8

Transcriber's Notes

0:16

Description

Step into a vivid tapestry of history as this segment unravels the mysterious beginnings of silk. From ancient Chinese monopolies to bewildering medieval myths—silk once imagined as tree bark or flower petals—the narrative follows daring monks who smuggled moth eggs concealed in a walking‑cane, igniting a European fascination that would reshape fashion and trade. Along the way, emperors balk at its price, and the tale of silk becomes a window into the races, religions, and economies of a world eager for luxury.

The journey continues across continents, tracing how conquered Greeks, Sicilian kings, and French monarchs each claimed the art of weaving, while English law once threatened silk wearers with imprisonment. By the eighteenth century, English weavers, displaced from the ruined Antwerp workshops, turned rivalry into triumph, producing fabrics that could rival their continental rivals. Listeners will hear a compelling blend of adventure, intrigue, and the relentless human drive to turn a humble worm into a symbol of elegance.

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Details

Language

en

Duration

~53 minutes (51K characters)

Publisher of text edition

Project Gutenberg

Credits

Produced by Markus Brenner, Colin M. Kendall and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries)

Release date

2014-12-24

Rights

Public domain in the USA.

About the author

VA

Various Authors

A shared credit like this usually means the audiobook brings together work by more than one writer. That can make for a lively listening experience, with different voices, styles, and ideas collected in one place.

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