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Silk Culture in China: preparing raw silk, 1857. Creator: Unknown
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Silk Culture in China: preparing raw silk, 1857. Creator: Unknown
Silk Culture in China: preparing raw silk, 1857. When the worms have cast their several skins...they are removed...preparatory to their spinning. In the course of a week after the commencement of spinning the silken cocoons are complete, and it now becomes necessary to take them in hand before the pupae turn into moths...the pupae...are killed by being placed in jars under layers of salt and leaves, with a complete exclusion of air. They are subsequently placed in moderately warm water, which dissolves the glutinous substance that binds the silk together, and the filament is wound off upon reels. This is put up in bundles of a certain size and weight, and either becomes an article of merchandise under the name of "raw silk, " or is subjected to the loom, and manufactured into various stuffs for home or for foreign consumption'. From "Illustrated London News", 1857
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EDITORS COMMENTS
This photograph, taken in China during the 19th century, offers a rare glimpse into the traditional process of preparing raw silk. The image shows an elderly man and woman, both dressed in traditional Chinese clothing, carefully tending to the silken cocoons that have been freshly harvested from the mulberry trees. The cocoons, which have been left to dry in baskets, are now ready for processing. The man, with a serious expression, holds a jar filled with salt and leaves, a method used to kill the pupae inside the cocoons, preventing them from turning into moths. The woman, with a gentle touch, places the jars in a large, wooden tub filled with warm water. As the glutinous substance that binds the silk together dissolves, the filament is carefully wound off onto reels. The raw silk, now free from its cocoon, is bundled up and either sold as an article of merchandise or subjected to the loom, where it is transformed into various textiles for home or foreign consumption. This image captures the essence of a family business, with the elderly couple working together in their courtyard, passing down the skills and traditions from one generation to the next. The photograph, published in the Illustrated London News in 1857, provides a fascinating insight into the world of silk production during the 19th century, a time when cottage industries were still prevalent and the textile industry was undergoing significant changes with the introduction of new machinery and technology.
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