Throughout Asia, textiles have played and important role in concepts of power and kingship and are so also closely associated with shamanistic, Buddhist and Islamic beliefs. The papers presented in this work represent the scholarship and research of 15 leading scholars from around the world who participated in The James W H Thomson Foundation symposium Status, Mtyh and the Supernatural - Unraveling the Secrets od Southeast Asian Textiles which was held in Bangkok in August of 2005