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Is it possible to imagine the daily life in a coastal community over a hundred years ago, between the dramatic coast of the North Sea and the mighty North York Moors in northern England? Even harder it is to catch the scent of the salty winds from the sea, the tarred boats and the heavy coal smoke, which mixed with a penetrating fish odour in the lively port!

A sense of both smell and a good insight into this vanished world is presented in a new visual story TEXTILE TRADITIONS – Between the North Sea and North York Moors. With the help of newly discovered pictures among other things, the textile historian Viveka Hansen guides us in an exciting world of narrow alleys and a surprising wealth from everyday clothes to the highest fashion of the day!

This visual story is based on the monograph The Textile History of Whitby 1700-1914, published in 2015. Among other reviews: Port Towns & Urban Cultures, Local and Maritime History at the University of Portsmouth, described the book as follows “As an exercise in multi-record linkage applied to three intersecting academic worlds, the volume and its author are to be commended.”

It is a fascinating time travel back to a world, filled with the multifaceted talents of both hand and thought. Perhaps it is also possible to perceive the mighty fragrance of the flowering heather – welcoming and refreshing!

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