This question guided the panel “Fiber Histories,” organized by the “Proteins and Fibers” Working Group, at the centennial meeting of the History of Science Society (HSS), held from November 7–10, 2024, in Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico.
Fibers—spun, woven, and combined to create materials essential to life—have long been central to industrial and cultural production. Whether they are plant-based like cotton and hemp, or animal-derived like silk and wool, fibers have been constitutive of many ordinary things from textiles and cordage to absorptive and binding materials. Yet, despite their ubiquity, fibers themselves often escape the historical scrutiny they deserve.
The “Fiber Histories” panel sought to fill this gap, articulating the importance of fibers as a vital subject of inquiry. Through four case studies—catgut, regenerated peanut protein fibers, henequen, and silk—presenters wove together methods from material culture, museum conservation, nutrition science, medicine, colonial studies, and economic history. These examples highlighted the mediality of fibers—their properties of tactility, durability, and degradability—and their transformative roles in human societies.
The panel opened with Isabela Dornelas (P&F group member), who examined the history of catgut, a fiber derived from animal intestines. Dornelas explored its dual roles in music and medicine, focusing on how its absorption properties (that is, the rate at which sutures are absorbed by the human body) revolutionized obstetric surgery. Her talk revealed how debates over sterility and hygiene shaped the scientific and industrial production of surgical catgut in the early twentieth century.
Next, Erin Alexa Freedman (Harvard University and P&F group member) explored Ardil, a fiber derived from peanut proteins, developed in mid-twentieth-century Britain. Freedman connected its creation to the colonial extraction of plant resources and its role in bridging textile research with nutritional science. This case study emphasized how fibers transcend traditional categories, linking food and fashion through material innovation.
Michelle Ha (Stanford University’s “Fiber Optics” workshop co-chair) turned the focus to henequen, an agave fiber often called the "green gold" of Yucatán. Her paper challenged the assumption that mechanization unequivocally increased production efficiency. Instead, Ha showed how the prioritization of global hard-fiber markets marginalized Indigenous manufacturing practices and knowledges, offering a critical lens on the rise and fall of Yucatán’s agave economy.
Finally, Lisa Onaga (P&F group member) traced the history of silk as a “hidden” medical material. Her presentation articulated how the technical and scientific analysis of silk in raw silk manufacture played an integral role in the application of silk in vascular prostheses. By critically examining the international standardization and testing of raw silk, Onaga highlighted how invisible silk suture threads could play a more prominent role in shaping methods of medical innovation.
The conference setting of Mérida, also known as the henequen capital of the world during its heyday of trade (1880–1915), added a rich, tangible dimension to our discussions. The grand mansions lining the city’s central boulevard, Paseo de Montejo that once belonged to families who built their wealth through the exploitation of agave fibers and workers from the seventeenth century onward, provide reminders of this fiber’s historical importance. Our panel members thus also embarked on an excursion to a historic henequen plantation in the municipality of Abalá, Yucatán, south of the city center. There, we witnessed the full lifecycle of henequen production, from the extraction of fibers from agave leaves to the creation of ropes and sacks. We also had the opportunity to try our own hands at scraping agave leaves to their fibrous core. Overall, this experience underscored how deeply henequen is entwined with Yucatán’s history, despite its decline after the rise of nylon in the 1980s. Local voices shared how the collapse of the henequen economy continues to shape the region, sparking debates about sustainability and economic resilience.
Convening the “Fiber Histories” panel in Mérida aptly helped us showcase the interdisciplinary importance of critical fiber studies for rethinking fibers and their histories. Much in the way the History of Science Society celebrated its centennial and uplifted global scholarly perspectives by holding its annual meeting in Latin America for the first time1, bringing attention to overlooked materials and their stories will allow us continue to unravel traditional categories of analysis and weave new connections between past and present. These threads—scientific, cultural, ecological—remind us that fibers are not just remnants of history but active agents in shaping the world we live in.
1“After one hundred years of existence, the History of Science Society meets in a Latin American country for the first time. The complex history of this place makes it a privileged space to think about the history of science from a global and environmental perspective without losing the depth/texture of the local. Braudelian times make sense when we consider the Chicxulub crater, the Mayan civilization, the climate change that caused its first disappearance, Spanish colonialism, migrations, and global capitalism.” Gisela Mateos and Edna Suárez-Díaz, greeting message to HSS conference participants, 7 November 2024.
Products Made from Henequen Fiber, 2024, Hacienda Mucuyché.
A cart with ropes and sacks made from henequen fiber, showcasing its durability.
Box for Transporting Henequen Fibers, 2024, Hacienda Mucuyché.
A wooden compartment used to store and transport fibers extracted from agave plants.
Henequen Fibers, 2024, Hacienda Mucuyché.
A close-up of processed henequen fibers, ready to be transformed into ropes or other products.
Henequén Plant, 2024, Hacienda Mucuyché.
Henequén agave plants in Yucatán, the source of the "green gold" that shaped the region’s economy.