The Ashley Book of Knots

Product Information

If you appreciate resourcefulness, art, sailing, camping, flying, needlecraft, knitting, crochet, history, physics, tenacity, dedication, collecting, music, carpentry, or anything really.

The knowledge gained shall expand your skills necessary for basic survival and you will find helpful in everyday living situation. It also provides a sort of sociological insight into how people worked not so long ago, too, with knots specific to stevedores, teamsters, movers, bakers, fishermen and others who once depended on knots but to a great extent no longer do so. Due to its scope and wide availability, The Ashley Book of Knots has become a significant reference work in the field of knotting. Just let me say, I picked this one up out of curousity at the library, started browsing through it, and kept browsing for the next two days.

Precisely named and classified (some new ones for the first time officially), they can be easily found in the big index. Ashley has devoted eleven years to writing this book, and it is based on forty years of looking for, trying out, and thinking up new knots. His ruling passions were marine painting and knot-tying, on which he was one of the world's leading authorities.

I can't find it there now, but i remembered it and thought i would list it here for anyone interested. The edition with the the cover illustration of the sailor on the pier is hilarious if you know what knot he's tying: a handcuff knot. Annie Proulx, with its descriptions and illustrations of various knots providing the chapter headings. Although the drawings are clean and simple, I am especially thick-headed when it comes to knots, which is why I am reading this book. If you are really into knots like I am and want to view one of the best source books on knots then I highly recommend this book.

This is probably the most important book on the subject, and has more knots listed than any other book. Image shows bag lanyards, yoke rope, manrope and two Chinese priest cords on one page and blocks, deadeyes, bull's-eyes, hearts, thimbles, etc. Small tear to bottom right-hand corner of front dustjacket, otherwise minor shelfwear to dustjacket and its extremities, slight shelfwear to extremities of bookcovers, otherwise fine.