Why read The Grammar of Ornament?

Book cover of The Grammar of Ornament: All 100 Color Plates from the Great Victorian Sourcebook of Historic Design

Book description

This beautiful, highly influential book, long a classic in its field, remains today one of the most comprehensive and best-organized presentations of historic ornamental design. The original 100 color plates, meticulously reproduced here from the rare original folio edition, present a dazzling spectrum of copyright-free design motifs from both ancient…

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Why read it?

1 author picked The Grammar of Ornament as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Kevin Cornell

Author

Clothing isn’t the only residue a culture and its people leave behind. Humans are natural pattern makers, and those patterns often give important insight into what those people value, as well as what fills their natural environment. Materials, dyes, tools… all these things have an influence on how a culture decorates their world and themselves. Patterns are a very subtle way to underscore a moment in a story.

From Kevin's list on The best books for world-building.