Field of Brooms

In the Bernese Oberland and other places throughout Switzerland, women make brooms out of purple grass harvested from the moors. Similar brooms can be found in other regions around the world, including Greece, China, Ghana, and the Cook Islands. The oldest examples – made more than 3,000 years ago – come from Egypt. This book explores the traditional production techniques for tied brooms, their parallels in other cultures, significance in everyday life, and ecological dimension, such as the tool’s connection to specific landscapes. Expert contributors highlight the potential inherent in the use of local materials as well as what we can learn from earlier examples.