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Fossil Consumerism

Q: Who wrote "Fossil Consumerism"?

"Fossil Consumerism" was written by Wout Saelens. Wout Saelens is a postdoctoral researcher at the Centre for Urban History of the University of Antwerp and the Social History of Capitalism research group of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. His research interests focus on the (early) modern histories of consumption, energy, pollution, political ecology and popular environmentalism.

Energy, Ecology and Everyday Life in the Early Modern Low Countries

Wout Saelens (Author),

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Category: Anthropocene Studies, Climate and Ecology, History, History 1500-1800

Language: English

DOI: 10.11116/9789461667236

ISBN: 9789462705067

Publication date: February 10, 2026

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Number of pages: 274

Size: 234 x 156 x 12 mm

Number of illustrations: 60

Illustrations and other content description:
illustrations, graphs and tables

Funded by: Universitaire Stichting
Universiteit Antwerpen
KU Leuven Fund for Fair Open Access
Open Book Collective

Stock item: 170350

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Category: Anthropocene Studies, Climate and Ecology, History, History 1500-1800

Language: English

DOI: 10.11116/9789461667236

ISBN: 9789461667236

Publication date: February 10, 2026

Download Free Epub

Number of pages: 274

Number of illustrations: 60

Illustrations and other content description:
illustrations, graphs and tables

Funded by: Universitaire Stichting
Universiteit Antwerpen
KU Leuven Fund for Fair Open Access
Open Book Collective

Category: Anthropocene Studies, Climate and Ecology, History, History 1500-1800

Language: English

DOI: 10.11116/9789461667236

ISBN: 9789461667229

Publication date: February 10, 2026

Download Free PDF

Number of pages: 274

Number of illustrations: 60

Illustrations and other content description:
illustrations, graphs and tables

Funded by: Universitaire Stichting
Universiteit Antwerpen
KU Leuven Fund for Fair Open Access
Open Book Collective

Summary
Contents
About the Author
Reviews
FAQs

A groundbreaking perspective on energy history that reveals the early modern home, and not industry, as the first major driver of fossil-fuel adoption.

This book explores how the homes of ordinary city dwellers sparked our modern dependence on fossil fuels. Drawing on a rich variety of sources, including probate inventories, household manuals, personal journals, medical treatises and contemporary artwork, it reveals how households in the early modern Low Countries embraced peat and coal to fuel new standards of warmth, light and domesticity. Yet, with these new home comforts came rising indoor pollution, intensified and gendered housework and, ultimately, a quiet shift in humanity’s relationship with nature.

Bridging the histories of environments, material culture and consumption, Fossil Consumerism offers a reinterpretation of the historical roots of global warming, finding these not in the industrial mill, but in the intimate, overlooked spaces of the home. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in the everyday origins of the Anthropocene.

List of Illustrations
List of Figures
List of Tables
Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1. Energy and environment in the early modern Low Countries
Chapter 2. The energy revolution comes home
Chapter 3. The culture of the home fire
Chapter 4. Flows of energy, flows of work in the household
Chapter 5. The rise of fossil consumerism
Conclusions
Notes
Bibliography
Index

Wout Saelens

Wout Saelens is a postdoctoral researcher at the Centre for Urban History of the University of Antwerp and the Social History of Capitalism research group of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. His research interests focus on the (early) modern histories of consumption, energy, pollution, political ecology and popular environmentalism.

In this carefully researched, historiographically alert, and smoothly written book, Saelens offers a novel look at the triumph of fossil fuels in modern history. In bringing hearths and stoves to center stage, Saelens has expanded the reach of energy history into the home, into everyday life, and into domestic divisions of labor - while injecting energy into the history of consumption. - J.R. McNeill, Georgetown University

What if the modern history of energy began not on factory floors, but on kitchen hearths—with the stove, not the steam engine, as its unlikely hero? Based on a meticulous study of household inventories, this book shifts the focus from industrial machines to everyday domestic life, revealing how fireplaces, lamps, and heating devices quietly powered a revolution. By tracing energy through the intimate spaces of the home, it uncovers a rich and often overlooked story: how ordinary households helped shape the path to the modern energy economy. - Jean-Baptiste Fressoz, Centre de Recherches Historiques

Frequently Asked Questions

What is "Fossil Consumerism" about?

A groundbreaking perspective on energy history that reveals the early modern home, and not industry, as the first major driver of fossil-fuel adoption.

Who wrote "Fossil Consumerism"?

"Fossil Consumerism" was written by Wout Saelens.

Is "Fossil Consumerism" available Open Access?

Yes, "Fossil Consumerism" is published Open Access. It is available under a BY-NC-ND license.

Who funded the publication of "Fossil Consumerism"?

Publication of "Fossil Consumerism" was funded by Universitaire Stichting
Universiteit Antwerpen
KU Leuven Fund for Fair Open Access
Open Book Collective
.

What is the Table of Contents for "Fossil Consumerism"?

List of Illustrations List of Figures List of Tables Preface Introduction Chapter 1. Energy and environment in the early modern Low Countries Chapter 2. The energy revolution comes home Chapter 3. The culture of the home fire Chapter 4. Flows of energy, flows of work in the household Chapter 5. The rise of fossil consumerism Conclusions Notes Bibliography Index

What is the DOI for "Fossil Consumerism"?

The Digital Object Identifier (DOI) for "Fossil Consumerism" is 10.11116/9789461667236.