Silk was an important part of ancient China’s economy because they were the only ones who could make, so it was exported in great quantities. It was of such a great value that the trade route between Asia and Europe was called the Silk Road. Legend says that silk was invented in 2696 BC by the emperor’s wife. She had been in the gardens when a silk worm’s cocoon fell into her lap. She noticed that it was made of tiny threads all woven together. She figured out how to unravel these threads, and using the loom, how to re-weave them into cloth.
Silk was reserved for clothing for the wealthy until the Qing dynasty. China wanted to keep the method of making silk a secret so that other civilizations would have to keep buying it from them. The method stayed secret for over 1000 years until 550 AD when two monks smuggled silkworm eggs out of China.
Works Cited
http://www.ducksters.com/history/china/legend_of_silk.php
Silk was reserved for clothing for the wealthy until the Qing dynasty. China wanted to keep the method of making silk a secret so that other civilizations would have to keep buying it from them. The method stayed secret for over 1000 years until 550 AD when two monks smuggled silkworm eggs out of China.
Works Cited
http://www.ducksters.com/history/china/legend_of_silk.php