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Lady Hsi-Ling-Shih, the "Goddess of Silk", and wife of the mythical
Yellow Emperor, is credited with inventing the loom and introducing silkworm cultivation to China 5,000 years ago. The cultivation of silk worms requires a very demanding level of care and knowledge and the secrets of silk were closely guarded by the Chinese for 2,000 years. Revealing those secrets or attempting to smuggle silk worm eggs or cocoons out of ancient China was an offense punishable by death. The early use of silk was reserved exclusively for the Emperor, selected relatives and the very highest of his dignitaries, who no doubt went to
bed each night luxuriating in their silk sheets.
Silk was gradually introduced to other classes of Chinese society and
became
one of the principal commodities of the Chinese economy over time.
Eventually
the use of silk became widespread, not only for clothing, bedding and
decoration, but also for industrial purposes, including musical
instruments, bows and
strings, fishing lines, a variety of bonds, and the world's first
luxury rag
paper. During the Han Dynasty, lengths of silk were given value
comparable to
pounds of gold and were used as salary for civil servants, to reward
outstanding subjects and to pay taxes (which were also accepted in
grain). Silk became
additionally useful in China as a trade currency with foreign countries.
Sericulture, or silk cultivation, was brought to Korea by waves of
Chinese
immigrants, approximately 200 BC, and traveled westward to India in
the next
century. It is said that in 440 AD, a prince of Khotan courted and
won a Chinese
princess who hid silkworm eggs in her voluminous hairpiece and thereby
smuggled them out of China. Khotan kept the secret. In approximately
550 AD, two
Nestorian monks arrived at the Byzantine Emperor Justinian's court
with silkworm
eggs hidden in their hollow bamboo staves and the Byzantine church began
cultivating and producing silk themselves, also guarding the ancient
secrets of silk
production. Persia mastered the art of silk weaving techniques by the sixth
century.
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By
the time of the Second Crusades in the 13th century, Italy began silk
production with the introduction of 2000 skilled silk weavers from
Constantinople.
Eventually, silk production became widespread in Europe, and silk
production has
continued to grow worldwide ever since. China however, still
maintains its
position as the world's leading producer of silk.
The production of silk is a long process that demands close attention
and
particular care. In the wild, silk is produced by a variety of insects.
Commercial production is dominated by the Mulberry Silk Moth, Bombyx
Mori—the cocoon fed on mulberry. The blind, flightless moth, Bombyx Mori, lays 500 or
more eggs
in just four to six days and dies soon afterwards. The eggs are the
size of a
pinpoint. One hundred eggs weigh only one gram. One ounce of eggs
produces
approximately 30,000 worms, which will eat a ton of mulberry leaves
to produce
twelve pounds of raw silk.
Two conditions must be met to produce high quality silk. One is
preventing
the moths from hatching out, the other is perfecting the diet on
which the
silkworms feed. The temperature for storing silkworm eggs must be
kept at 65
degrees F, and gradually increased to 77 degrees, the correct
temperature for
hatching. Once the eggs hatch, the baby worms feed on fresh, hand-
picked and chopped
mulberry leaves every hour (producing a munching sound like heavy
rain on a
rooftop), until they reach maturity. Thousands of feeding worms are
kept on
trays that are stacked one on top of the other until they are ready
to enter the
cocoon stage. A newly hatched silkworm will multiply its weight
10,000 times
within a month, changing color and shedding its whitish-gray skin
several
times. When the time comes to build cocoons, the worm will produce a
jelly-like
substance in its silk glands that hardens on contact with the air. The
environment at this stage, must be controlled to protect the growing
cocoon from loud
noises, strong smells and drafts. It takes three to four days for a
silkworm to
spin a cocoon around its body.
Silkworm cocoons are complete when they reach the appearance of puffy
white
balls. After eight to nine days, the cocoons are ready to unwind.
During this
stage, the cocoons are maintained in a warm, dry environment until
they are
steamed or baked to kill the worms, or pupas. The tightly woven
cocoons are then
dipped into hot water to loosen the fine filaments, which are unwound
onto a
spool. Each cocoon is comprised of a filament between 600 and 900
meters long.
One silk thread is made from five to eight of these super fine filaments
twisted together, which is then ready to be woven into cloth.
The cultivation of silk yields a natural, luxurious fabric that has
long been
valued for its sheen, its durability, its fluidity and its
elasticity. The
light reflective quality and wide versatility of silk make it a
highly desired
fibre that can be put to many uses today, just as it was in ancient
China. Bed
linens made from natural silk are lightweight and cool in summer and
warm in
the winter, making them a great choice for all seasons. Silk bed sheets and
pillows are beautiful, luxurious and practical, providing the
ultimate in
sleeping comfort year round.
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