Animated Knots by Grog[1] and 3D Knots[2] are oft-cited places to learn knots on the internet, but OP's is such a nice throwback. Don't miss the "requested entries" page with 28 more knots![3]
Agree with the other commenter - this is very charming! I find it a wonderfully romantic idea to contemplate that, at some point in human past, studying and developing new knots (or even stumbling upon new knots and sharing that idea) would have been a realistic endeavour that expanded the boundary of human knowledge and gave us newer or safer ways of building and achieving things.
It isn't a hobby of the past. Arborists are professionals still using knots and studying them (especially with the modern rope materials changing the old knowledge around knots). Rock climbing is a hobby but knots are life-or-death for them.
Knots are still being invented nowadays. Or variants of existing knots.
Here are PACI's systematic studies on a few vital knots:
Animated Knots by Grog[1] and 3D Knots[2] are oft-cited places to learn knots on the internet, but OP's is such a nice throwback. Don't miss the "requested entries" page with 28 more knots![3]
[1]: https://www.animatedknots.com/
[2]: https://knots3d.com/
[3]: https://knots.neocities.org/requested
Charming old site!
It would be neat to see it updated to something along the lines of:
https://507movements.com/
That said, most folks would be better served by:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16086997-why-knot-how-to...
or some other text with clear illustrations and instructions, or if one wants something comprehensive:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/816629.The_Ashley_Book_o...
(note that in the literature, knots are referred to by their ABOK#)
Agree with the other commenter - this is very charming! I find it a wonderfully romantic idea to contemplate that, at some point in human past, studying and developing new knots (or even stumbling upon new knots and sharing that idea) would have been a realistic endeavour that expanded the boundary of human knowledge and gave us newer or safer ways of building and achieving things.
It isn't a hobby of the past. Arborists are professionals still using knots and studying them (especially with the modern rope materials changing the old knowledge around knots). Rock climbing is a hobby but knots are life-or-death for them.
Knots are still being invented nowadays. Or variants of existing knots.
Here are PACI's systematic studies on a few vital knots:
https://www.paci.com.au/knots.php
Here is a recent (2025) paper on the stability of the bowline:
https://www.epfl.ch/labs/flexlab/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/...