"The past 300 years have produced a wealth of innovative industrial design. Items such as the garden trug and bicycles, the Wedgwood teapot and milk bottles were all developed during these centuries, and yet are still in use today. In this book, the authors look over this timespan and select examples of fine wood, glass, metal and ceramic designs on a decade by decade basis (broader periods in the 1700s). They put each design into the context of the time it was developed and illustrate each item with scale drawings, photographs and catalogue entries from the period. The result is a pictorial overview of the development of design in the past 300 years. The book also gives a clear picture of the relationship between design and materials and highlights the importance of integration between different design disciplines."--Jacket.