Tents are among the world's oldest forms of vernacular architecture - dwellings constructed by the people who use them from local materials suited for particular local conditions. 'Tents' describes, in words and drawings, the major tent designs used by the nomads of the world. Torvald Faegre's discussion of tents - the tipi of the American Indians, the compound tents of Siberia, the black tent of the Middle East, among others - demonstrates the astonishing variety of ways in which they are constructed and used. Because tents have always been designed to harmonize with their environments, they provide exemplary prototypes for modern shelters. In fact, Torvald Faegre argues, the design elements in tents can readily be adapted to more permanent structures. Ancient as they are, tents are as significant today as ever.