ABSTRACT
This chapter illustrates the process that, starting from the stem of the flax plant, leads to extraction of the textile fibers to obtain a thread and to realize a fabric. The processing steps may differ and be carried out by different means, depending on the historical period, it proposes a summary description to give the reader an idea of the complexity that characterizes the flax processing method. The scientific name of the common flax plant is Linum usitatissimum. As pointed out by the Latin adjective usitatissimum this plant has been very much used since ancient times. The flax plant has several species and it is cultivated, as in the past, not only for the production of fabrics, but also to exploit the seeds from which flax flour and linseed oil are derived; the linen is an annual plant that grows with greater ease in the temperate zones of the earth.
