June Sprigg Libros

The Shakers were nineteenth-century America's largest and best-known communal utopian society. By 1840, nearly 6,000 celibate Brothers and Sisters lived and worked in 18 communities from Maine to Kentucky. The Shakers were famous for their unusual way of life, for the excellence and simplicity of their work, and for the dance worship that gave them their name." "Author June Sprigg has lived and worked with the Shakers since 1972, and her text discusses their origins and beliefs, their work and daily life. More than 200 full-color photographs, taken especially for this book by Michael Freeman, richly illustrate their architecture, furniture, crafts, and inventions. The photographs were shot - almost entirely with available light - in the villages and museums in New England, New York, and Kentucky.

In this fascinating book, master craftspeople from the Hancock and Canterbury Shaker Villages share their skills and knowledge about how to use Shaker techniques and designs in such craft areas as basketry, miniatures, handweaving, and herbal products. Illustrated.

"The Shaker movement in America began in 1774 when Mother Ann Lee emigrated from Manchester, England, with a small group of followers, and settled in New York State. Despite impoverished beginnings, the Shakers flourished in the early nineteenth century, and by 1840 there were four to six thousand members living in eighteen principle communities from Maine to Kentucky. Turning away from society, they lived in large families that were both celibate and communal. In striving for heaven on earth, they created a visual environment of such harmony and quiet power that it continues to impress observers today, when the Shakers have all but passed from the American scene. The many works presented in this beautiful volume reveal the Shaker commitment to excellence in all matters. The chairs, cases of drawers, work stands, baskets, oval boxes, wheelbarrows, stoves, looms, and even tailoring tools have a purity of form that transcends mere utility and elevates our appreciation beyond a sense of function."--Amazon.