Contributed articles.

This book brings to life the world of caravan trade--constituting not only merchants, but also pilgrims, pastoralists, and mercenaries; flows not only of goods, credit and money, but also of ideas, secret intelligence and fighting power. Contrary to the view that the ages of sail and steam rendered obsolete these more 'archaic' forms of overland connectivity, Jagjeet Lally demonstrates how the annual transhumance between North India and the Central Asian steppe was critical to the production and exercise of political power into the nineteenth century. Central to this narrative is the waning of the Mughal Empire and the emergence in the mid-eighteenth century of a new Afghan kingdom, whose leaders drew their power from the financial flows and force of arms moving through the networks of caravan trade, and who thus patronised the continued traffic between India and inland Eurasia. India and the Silk Roads is a global history of a continental interior, the first to comprehensively examine the textual and material traces of caravan trade in the 'age of empires'. Lally tells a story resonating with our own times, as China's Belt and Road Initiative once again transforms life across Eurasia.

Raising wild silk meets social and environmental challenges facing the textile industry--the second-largest global polluter--head-on by providing a sustainable occupation that maintains social bonds and a connection with the land.

In this book, Brenda M. King challenges the notion that Britain always exploited its empire. Creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship were all part of the Anglo-Indian silk trade and were nurtured in the era of empire through mutually beneficial collaboration. The trade operated within and without the empire, according to its own dictates and prospered in the face of increasing competition from China and Japan. King presents a new picture of the trade, where the strong links between Indian designs, the English silk industry and prominent members of the English the arts and crafts movement led to the production of beautiful and luxurious textiles. Lavishly illustrated, this book will be of interest to those interested in the relationship between the British Empire and the Indian subcontinent, as well as by historians of textiles and fashion.

India and the Silk Road: Exploring Current Opportunities is based on the historical as well as contemporary relevance of the Silk Road. This volume comprises essays by a number of contributors who have dealt with varied aspects of the reality of this historical road in a new geopolitical context, with the potential of shared prosperity among the states connected with this route. The new Silk Road of the twenty-first century covers almost all modes of communication, infrastructure and transportation, including road network, rail and oil and gas pipelines.

When a new technology makes people ill, how high does the body count have to be before protectives steps are taken? This disturbing book tells a dark story of hazardous manufacturing, poisonous materials, environmental abuses, political machinations, and economics trumping safety concerns. It explores the century-long history of "fake silk," or cellulose viscose, used to produce such products as rayon textiles and tires, cellophane, and everyday kitchen sponges. Paul Blanc uncovers the grim history of a product that crippled and even served a death sentence to many industry workers while also releasing toxic carbon disulfide into the environment. Viscose, an innovative and lucrative product first introduced in the early twentieth century, quickly became a multinational corporate enterprise. Blanc investigates industry practices from the beginning through two highly profitable world wars, the midcentury export of hazardous manufacturing to developing countries, and the current "greenwashing" of viscose as an eco-friendly product. Deeply researched and boldly presented, this book brings to light an industrial hazard whose egregious history ranks with those of asbestos, lead, and mercury.