The thirst for exotic ornament among fashionable women in the metropoles of Europe and America prompted a bustling global trade in ostrich feathers that flourished from the 1880s until the First World War. When feathers fell out of fashion with consumers, the result was an economic catastrophe for many, a worldwide feather bust. In this remarkable book, Sarah Stein draws on rich archival materials to bring to light the prominent and varied roles of Jews in the feather trade. She discovers that Jews fostered and nurtured the ...
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The thirst for exotic ornament among fashionable women in the metropoles of Europe and America prompted a bustling global trade in ostrich feathers that flourished from the 1880s until the First World War. When feathers fell out of fashion with consumers, the result was an economic catastrophe for many, a worldwide feather bust. In this remarkable book, Sarah Stein draws on rich archival materials to bring to light the prominent and varied roles of Jews in the feather trade. She discovers that Jews fostered and nurtured the trade across the global commodity chain and throughout the far-flung territories where ostriches were reared and plucked, and their feathers were sorted, exported, imported, auctioned, wholesaled, and finally manufactured for sale. From Yiddish-speaking Russian-Lithuanian feather handlers in South Africa to London manufacturers and wholesalers, from rival Sephardic families whose feathers were imported from the Sahara and traded across the Mediterranean, from New York's Lower East Side to entrepreneurial farms in the American West, Stein explores the details of a remarkably vibrant yet ephemeral culture. This is a singular story of global commerce, colonial economic practices, and the rise and fall of a glamorous luxury item.
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Add this copy of Plumes: Ostrich Feathers, Jews, and a Lost World of to cart. $11.63, good condition, Sold by Books From California rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Simi Valley, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Yale University Press.
Add this copy of Plumes: Ostrich Feathers, Jews, and a Lost World of to cart. $32.83, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Hialeah, FL, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Yale University Press.
Add this copy of Plumes: Ostrich Feathers, Jews, and a Lost World of to cart. $35.00, like new condition, Sold by Southampton Sag Harbor Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Southampton, NY, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Yale University Press.
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Like New in Like New jacket. First Edition, First Printing. Published by Yale University Press, 2008. Octavo. Brown cloth boards stamped in gold with cartographic endpapers. Book is like new; clean with no writing or names. Sharp corners and spine straight. Binding tight and pages crisp. Dust jacket is like new with very light shelf wear. 245 pages. ISBN: 9780300127362. 100% positive feedback. 30 day money back guarantee. NEXT DAY SHIPPING! Excellent customer service. Please email with any questions or if you would like a photo. All books packed carefully and ship with free delivery confirmation/tracking. All books come with free bookmarks. Ships from Southampton, New York. We Buy Books! Individual titles, libraries, collections. Message us if you have books to sell!
Add this copy of Plumes: Ostrich Feathers, Jews, and a Lost World of to cart. $63.40, new condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Hialeah, FL, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Yale University Press.
