Linda Lynton, a scholar of Indian textiles and ethnic art, has compiled a thorough guide to the patterns and regional motifs used throughout the sari's history. The essential simplicity of the sari is set against its highly sophisticated design vocabulary and wonderfully varied regional traditions of color, pattern, and weave.

The Sari is divided into six sections, each examining a different part of India: the West; the East; the Northeast and the Himalayas; the Eastern Deccan; the South, and the Western Deccan.

The result of many years' research, The Sari contains the most detailed analysis of sari design ever undertaken. Many rare and unusual saris are featured, including some from remote and restricted areas that have never been photographed or published. Vivid colorplates are augmented by black-and-white closeup photographs of sari designs and diagrams of more than forty sari types.

And a uniquely useful and substantial reference section features a glossary of textile terms; information on museum collections; translations of more than four hundred Indian words and concepts; a full bibliography; a detailed chronology; and numerous maps. For textile enthusiasts and historians, for collectors, fashion designers, and artists, and for the many devotees of the sari, this is a definitive study unparalleled in range, illustration, and depth of research.