''The Ashley Book of Knots'' is an

encyclopedia An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...

knot A knot is an intentional complication in cordage which may be practical or decorative, or both. Practical knots are classified by function, including hitches, bends, loop knots, and splices: a ''hitch'' fastens a rope to another object; a ' ...

s written and illustrated by the American sailor and artist Clifford W. Ashley. First published in 1944, it was the culmination of over 11 years of work. The book contains 3,857 numbered entries (the final number, "3854", is added to by three "1/2" #s (794.5, 1034.5, & 2585.5) and, in later editions of the book, #1425a for Hunter's Bend; and one number has no entry) and approximately 7,000 illustrations. The entries include knot instructions, uses, and some histories, categorized by type or function. It remains one of the most important and comprehensive books on knots.

Use as a reference

Due to its scope and wide availability, ''The Ashley Book of Knots'' has become a significant

reference work A reference work is a work, such as a paper, book or periodical (or their electronic equivalents), to which one can refer for information. The information is intended to be found quickly when needed. Such works are usually ''referred'' to f ...

in the field of knotting. The numbers Ashley assigned to each knot can be used to unambiguously identify them. This helps to identify knots despite local colloquialisms or identification changes. Citations to Ashley numbers are usually in the form: " The Constrictor Knot (ABOK #1249)", "ABOK #1249" or even simply "#1249" if the context of the reference is clear or already established. Some knots have more than one Ashley number due to having multiple uses or forms. For example, the main entry for #1249 is in the chapter on binding knots but it is also listed as #176 in a chapter on occupational knot usage. ''The Ashley Book of Knots'' was compiled and first published before the introduction of

synthetic fiber Synthetic fibers or synthetic fibres (in British English; see spelling differences) are fibers made by humans through chemical synthesis, as opposed to natural fibers that are directly derived from living organisms, such as plants (like cotton) ...

ropes, during a time when

natural fiber Natural fibers or natural fibres (see spelling differences) are fibers that are produced by geological processes, or from the bodies of plants or animals. They can be used as a component of composite materials, where the orientation of fibers ...

cordage – typically twisted, laid, or braided rope – was most commonly used. The commentary on some knots may fail to address their behavior when tied with modern synthetic fiber or

kernmantle Kernmantle rope () is rope constructed with its interior core protected by a woven exterior sheath designed to optimize strength, durability, and flexibility. The core fibers provide the tensile strength of the rope, while the sheath protects the ...

style ropes.

Corrections and additions

Ashley suffered a debilitating

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

the year after the book was published. He was not able to produce an

erratum An erratum or corrigendum (plurals: errata, corrigenda) (comes from la, errata corrige) is a correction of a published text. As a general rule, publishers issue an erratum for a production error (i.e., an error introduced during the publishing pro ...

or oversee a corrected edition. Corrections submitted by the

International Guild of Knot Tyers The International Guild of Knot Tyers (or IGKT) is a worldwide association for people with an interest in knots and knot tying. Formation and beginning Officially established in 1982, the founding members were initially drawn together by the ...

were incorporated in 1991.Ashley (1993), p.

Edition notice The edition notice (or copyright page) is the page in a book containing information about the current edition, usually on the back of the title page. It often contains a copyright notice, legal notices, publication information, printing history, ...

The original list of revisions submitted to the publisher is believed to have been lost, but many had been collected from a series of articles in ''Knotting Matters'', the Guild's quarterly publication.The ''Knotting Matters'' issues cited in the above ''Knot News'' article are: KM1, KM28, KM31, KM32, and KM33. Additional errors have been identified since the 1991 corrections.For an example see the footnotes in harness loop and

butterfly loop The butterfly loop, also known as lineman's loop, butterfly knot, alpine butterfly knot, Swiss loop and lineman's rider, is a knot used to form a fixed loop in the middle of a rope. Tied in the bight, it can be made in a rope without access to ...

articles. Additionally, thi
IGKT posting
contains many verifiable examples. At least one knot, the

Hunter's bend Hunter's bend (or rigger's bend) is a knot used to join two lines. It consists of interlocking overhand knots, and can jam under moderate strain. It is topologically similar to the Zeppelin bend. When assessed against other bends in stress test ...

(#1425A), was added in 1979.Ashley (1993), pp. 260–261

Cultural references

''The Ashley Book of Knots'' is quoted extensively in the novel ''

The Shipping News ''The Shipping News'' is a novel by American author E. Annie Proulx and published by Charles Scribner's Sons in 1993. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, the U.S. National Book Award, as well as other awards. It was adapted as a film of the ...

'' (1993) by

E. Annie Proulx E is the fifth letter of the Latin alphabet. E or e may also refer to: Commerce and transportation * €, the symbol for the euro, the European Union's standard currency unit * ℮, the estimated sign, an EU symbol indicating that the weigh ...

, with its descriptions and illustrations of various knots providing the chapter headings. In the novel's acknowledgements, Proulx writes that "without the inspiration of Clifford W. Ashley's wonderful 1944 work, ''The Ashley Book of Knots'', which I had the good fortune to find at a yard sale for a quarter, this book would have remained just a thread of an idea."

Notes and references

External links

The Ashley Book of Knots
on

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

.
''Thou Shalt Knot: Clifford W. Ashley.'' A New Bedford Whaling Museum exhibition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashley Book of Knots * American encyclopedias 1944 non-fiction books Specialized encyclopedias

Use as a reference

Corrections and additions

Cultural references

Notes and references

Further reading

External links