Imagine a world without rubber - neither tyres for motoring or flying, nor bouncing balls for sports, neither seals for washing machines and dishwashers, nor medical gloves - no elastics. This unique book tells the fascinating story of four thousand years of rubber - from its significance in Mayan religious rituals and culture to its pivotal role in today's world. It is seen through the lives of the adventurers and scientists who promoted it, lusted after it and eventually tamed it into the ubiquitous, yet crucial material of our lives today. It also examines the lives of those who caused the deaths of millions of natives in Africa and South America whilst seeking to satisfy the developing world's demand for this wonderful new material as well as their nemeses. Written in a biographical format, the book examines why rubber ages and deteriorates and how the ravages of time may be ameliorated. It deals with our current concern for the environment and various options for 'waste disposal'. For the majority of people, rubber is mostly an unknown history and even for those who think they know 'the truth' about rubber, this book may offer many surprises.

This book began with the aim of telling the almost forgotten story of Thomas Hancock, the rubber developer who in his own day was acknowledged as one of the great scientific pioneers of the Industrial Revolution. But as research progressed, it was clear that Thomas and his five brothers, the Hancocks of Marlborough, together constituted a unique family which made a tremendous yet virtually unknown contribution to nineteenth-century science and art. Walter designed and ran the first steam carriages to carry passengers on the common roads of England and so began the age of mechanized transport. Thomas founded the UK rubber industry when he discovered how to vulcanize rubber reliably; his company survived for some 120 years before being taken over. Charles was a well established painter who was also instrumental in the manufacture of gutta percha-coated undersea cables, used by the electric telegraph to begin the global information highway. Other brothers, John, James and William all made significant contributions to the development of Victorian science and culture. This book tells the story of the family and the remarkable people in it, from the Great Fire of Marlborough in 1653 to the present day, using the Hancock family archive of many unpublished and previously unknown documents.

Imagine a world without rubber - neither tyres for motoring or flying, nor bouncing balls for sports, neither seals for washing machines and dishwashers, nor medical gloves, no elastic! This unique book tells the fascinating story of four thousand years of rubber - from its significance in Mayan religious rituals and culture to its pivotal role in today's world. It is seen through the lives of the adventurers and scientists who promoted it, lusted after it, and eventually tamed it into the ubiquitous and crucial material of our lives today. At the same time, it includes the lives of those who caused the deaths of millions of natives in Africa and South America whilst seeking to satisfy the developing world's lust for this wonderful new material as well as their nemeses. As with any biography, this book considers old age, why rubber deteriorates and how the ravages of time may be ameliorated. In death, it deals with our current concern for the environment and various options for 'waste disposal'. For the majority of people, rubber is mostly an unknown history and even for those who think they know 'the truth' about rubber, this book may offer many surprises.