Indiennes are printed and painted cotton fabrics that came from India to Europe in the 16th century and were soon imitated by French and Swiss companies. In the 17th and 18th centuries, an unprecedented enthusiasm for these colorful fabrics gripped all of Europe, influencing society, business and fashion for almost two centuries.In knowledgeably written texts and rich images, fascinating strores are told: of how Swiss companies helped to shape the profitable indienne industry; of how the firm Volkart Brothers built up a trade empire in 19th-century India, wich simultaneously drew Basel missionaries to the subcontinent; and of how, in the 20th century, a Swiss photographer conveyed Gandhi's struggle for independence to the world, a struggle whoose protagonist was a simple cotton fabric: khadi
