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Visitors look at a replica of a watch depicting its movement mechanisms displayed at the stand of a Swiss luxury watchmaker on the opening day of the Watches and Wonders Geneva luxury watch fair, in Geneva on April 14, 2026. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images
In our hyperefficient modern world, something curious has happened to many preindustrial arts, crafts, and skills. What was once ordinary daily practice—making shoes by hand, riding horses for transport, growing food without synthetic chemicals—has largely vanished from mainstream life.
