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In Rope, Tim Queeney takes readers on a sweeping journey through the history of one of humanity’s most fundamental — and often overlooked — materials. From the oceans navigated by Magellan and the 15th-century fleet of Admiral Zheng He to Polynesian multihulls, Queeney argues that without rope, none of these aerial, naval and terrestrial feats would have been possible.

But the book doesn’t stop at nautical adventure. It stretches across millennia to show how rope underpins the pyramids, the Roman Colosseum, the construction of Hagia Sophia, Notre-Dame, the Sultan Hasan Mosque and the Brooklyn Bridge—structures whose very existence depended on fibre, twisting, tensile strength and human ingenuity. Queeney then turns his eye to the future: synthetic fibre, cables, potential space-elevators, and how rope might continue to shape civilisation.

About the Author
Tim Queeney is a sailor, writer and editor deeply rooted in maritime culture. He served as editor of Ocean Navigator, teaches navigation, and has spent a lifetime handling rope, tying knots, working at sea — which gives him a rare material-based insight into the material’s larger historical role.

Publication date: 2025
Publisher: Icon Books
Pages: 336
ISBN: 9781837733316