The first comprehensive worldwide survey, an essential document for anyone concerned with art, crafts, and decorative objects. The diversity of the crafts included here is truly astonishing: Berber flatweaves, North African amulets, Tibetan tiger rugs, Japanese kojeshi dolls, Aborigine microlith tools, Maori fish hooks, North American carved gourds, Amazonian pottery, Hungarian painted eggs, Venetian glass beads, German and French tin-glazed ceramics, Pacific totem poles, Shaker boxes. . . .

The book is organized geographically—North America, Central and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australasia and Oceania—and each section is subdivided into specific crafts. The techniques used in a particular craft and its history—from Andean backstrap weaving and Polish paper cutting to Hausa embroidery and wood carving in the Hindu Kush—are explained and illustrated, highlighting an incredible diversity of styles.

Complete with a bibliography and information on museums, this survey celebrates skills found all around the world. 475 color, 5 b&w illustrations.