Is there any paper in the Qin Dynasty?

People in the Qin dynasty wrote on paper, and it was like this in the Qin dynasty. At that time, some people called silk and satin paper, and the real paper appeared in the Western Han Dynasty.

inventor

Papermaking is one of the four great inventions in ancient China. Who invented papermaking? For a long time, people have always believed that it was invented by Cai Lun, a eunuch in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The main basis is the record of Biography of Cai Lun in the later Han Dynasty.

The book said: "Since ancient times, book contracts have mostly used bamboo slips as book contracts, and silk books (that is, silk books tailored according to writing needs) have been paper contracts. Expensive and simple, inconvenient for people. Aaron invented bark, hemp head and cloth. Fishing nets are made of paper. In the first year of Yuanxing, play it. The emperor has a good skill, so he has been using it, so the world calls it' Cai Hou Paper'. "

Therefore, some later works at home and abroad regard Cai Lun of the Eastern Han Dynasty as the inventor of paper, and take 105, when he presented paper to Hanhe, as the birth year of paper.

In the history books, there were some records about paper long before Cai Lun. For example, "The Old Stories of Three Ancient People" once said: Prince Liu Wei has a big nose, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty doesn't like him. Jiang Chong gave him an idea to "cover his nose with paper" when he went to see Emperor Wu again.

At Jiang Chong's words, the prince covered his nose with paper and went to the palace to see Ming Chengzu. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was furious. This happened in 9 1 year BC. Another example is the biography of Empress Zhao in the Han Dynasty. According to records, after Cao Wei's death, Zhao, the sister of Princess Zhao, the favorite of Emperor Han Chengdi, wanted Cao Weineng, a maid of honor, and sent someone to send poison and a copy of the Book of Harmony, forcing Cao Wei to commit suicide.

According to Ying Shao, a native of the Eastern Han Dynasty, "Hehoof" means "tissue paper" (hereinafter referred to as silk cotton paper). Another example is the Biography of Jia Kui in the Later Han Dynasty. In 76 AD, the emperor ordered Jia Kui to select 20 people to teach Zuo Zhuan and "recite bamboo slips and paper classics". The above documents about paper are all earlier than A.D. 105, which is the year when Cai Lun presented paper to Han and Di.

Extended data:

First, the ancient papermaking methods

Referring to the picture on the right, there are five main steps in papermaking in Ming Dynasty. As can be seen from the figure, the papermaking industry in China was quite mature at that time, and experts in each process performed their duties, and some special papermaking tools had been developed. The paper-making method shown in the figure was widely used in ancient China, and its manufacturing speed was faster.

Chop bamboo and float it in the pond: chop bamboo and soak it in the pond to make the fiber fully absorb water. You can also add plant raw materials such as bark, hemp head and old fishing net and mash them. Boil until it is yellow enough: cook the broken materials until the fibers are dispersed and until they are cooked into slurry.

As you can see in the picture, the broken materials in the cauldron are pressed with big stones, which helps to boil completely. Throw the material into the curtain: after the pulp is cooled, pick up the pulp with a flat bamboo curtain and filter the water to become a paper film.

This step requires skilled skills to fish out the paper film with moderate thickness and uniform distribution. Cover the curtain and press the paper: fold the paper film out one by one, press it with a wooden board, put heavy stones on it and press the water out. Through-fire baking: stick the semi-dry paper film on the fire to dry, and take it off to get the finished product.

In addition, the paper-making methods not recorded in Tiangong Wu Kai and various ancient books have been passed down to this day, which is longer than the paper-making method. The inverted paper method is mainly used by Dai, Tibetan, Uygur and other ethnic minorities in a small scale. Compared with the paper-making method, the paper made by the inverted paper method is rougher and slower.

Second, the significance and value

Papermaking, especially improved by Cai Lun in the Eastern Han Dynasty (also known as "Cai Hou Paper"), is a revolution in writing materials. It is easy to carry and has a wide range of materials, which has promoted the cultural development of China, Arabia, Europe and even the whole world.

With words, the most important thing is to have a good carrier. The ancient Egyptians used papyrus of the Nile to describe history; In ancient Europe, people used animal skins, such as sheepskin, to write words for a long time. In China, before the invention of papermaking, Oracle Bone Inscriptions, bamboo slips and silk were used for writing and recording in ancient times.

However, Oracle bones and bamboo slips are relatively heavy, and Qin Shihuang has to read a whole car a day; Although silk is light, it is expensive and not suitable for writing. By the Han Dynasty, due to the rapid development of economy and culture in the Western Han Dynasty, Oracle Bone Inscriptions and bamboo slips could no longer meet the needs of development, thus promoting the improvement of writing tools-paper was invented.

Papermaking is an important chemical process. The invention of paper is a very valuable contribution made by China to the spread and development of human culture, a great achievement in the history of China and an important influence on the history of China.

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