Silk, the fabric of emperors.

Si-ling

The discovery of silk.

In 2640 BCE, 14 year old Si-Ling, wife of China's legendary Yellow Emperor Hoang-ti, sat in her garden, dreamily sipping hot tea in the shade of a mulberry tree. A breeze started up and a cocoon fell into her teacup. Due to her tranquil mood she didn't extract it from her cup as she might have done another day, but watched the fuzzy object in fascination, as it slowly started to dissolve, filling her cup with a long shimmering filament. She started to imagine how beautiful a robe she might weave for her husband from this thread.

The emperor, after hearing her story, advised her to study the life cycle of the silkworm. Not always a dreamer, Si-Ling went on to design a loom for weaving the filaments into a fabric, and instructed her entourage in the art of raising the insects and creating thread from their cocoons, nowadays called sericulture.

Old Chinese silk brocade.

Though at first restricted to the imperial court, the smooth, shimmering fabric soon became an integral part of the Chinese economy and a staple of pre-industrial international trade. Ever since, it has been praised all over the world for its luxurious feel and beauty. Si-Ling's name has lived forever, too! The word "silk" is an approximation of how her name is pronounced in the Chinese language. Even today Si-Ling is worshipped as the "Goddess of Silk".

Eventually, the trade reached India, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, the trade developing to such an extent that the major trade routes became known as the Silk Road or Silk Route.

The Chinese emperors guarded their secret to sericulture jealously, decreeing death by torture to anyone who might divulge its secret. For thousands of years the manufacture of the lustrous material remained a mystery to the rest of the world.

Imperial hair ornament.

Sericulture spreads over the world.

In the first century CE, a Chinese imperial princess was to marry a prince of Khotan, a kingdom at the border of the Taklimakan desert in central Asia. She didn't want to live without the precious fabric she was used to and smuggled cocoons and mulberry seeds in her elaborate hair ornament, thereby breaking the embargo and starting the spread of sericulture to the rest of continental Asia.

Cocoon sorting in Japan.

In the 3th century CE Himiko, the queen of Japan, sent out an expedition to China in order to discover how this mysterious fabric was made. The expedition managed not only to obtain some silkworms, but also captured 4 young Chinese girls who were forced to teach their captors the art of its manufacture. This was the start of a blooming sericulture industry in the Land of the Rising Sun.

The Romans came first in contact with the shining fabric at the Battle of Carrhae (presently the ruined town of Haran, in Turkey) in 53 BCE where they fought the Parthian army. Although the Romans, under General Crassus, greatly outnumbered the Parthians, they were so intimidated by the dazzling colored banners the Parthians carried, that they lost all courage and suffered a humiliating defeat.

The Battle of Carrhae.

In Europe the production of the coveted fabric remained a mystery for another five centuries, although the Romans, despite the traumatic experience at Carrhae, loved and wore the luxurious fabric. Emperor Tiberius even passed sumptuary laws, forbidding men to wear garments made from it, much as Muslim men are forbidden to wear it today.

Monks handing Justinian smuggled eggs.

In 522, however, two Nestorian monks, working for Byzantine emperor Justinian, smuggled eggs from China into Constantinople, hiding them in hollow canes. They had also observed the secret techniques in China, and the emperor was able to set up production within the palace walls. For many centuries more the weaving and trading remained a strict imperial monopoly, guarded as closely by the Byzantines as by the Chinese before them.


Do you feel you learned a lot? I'm sorry to say that most of the above, especially the more romantic parts, belongs to the realm of legend rather than history, intriguing as the stories are. If you are interested in reading a factual history ,though, you can on another page.

There is nothing like it

Silk is a natural protein fiber, like wool, but unlike linen and cotton which are cellulose fibers. Its unique shimmering appearance is due to the triangular cross shape of its fibers. This causes the light to reflect at different angles, giving a prismlike effect. The texture is smooth but not slippery, as synthetic fibers often are.

It is one of the strongest natural fibers. One filament is as strong as a comparable one of steel. The fabric is so tough that it in the past it was used as arrow stopping armor. Up to World War 1 bulletproof vests were made of it.

Photo: Patty Olds www.sevenscrolls.com .

The fabric is comfortable to wear in warm weather as it absorbs moisture well. Also, its low conductivity keeps warm air close to the skin. This makes it comfortable in cold weather as well.

The material's elegant look and feel makes it perfect for furnishing applications. Upholstery, wall hangings, curtains and, of course, decorative pillows are fashioned out of this delightful fabric. All of them can be applied to your home decoration scheme with great effect.

Go to The life cycle of Bombyx mori.
Go to Sericulture.
Go to The Silk Road.
Go to History.
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