Papermaking is one of the four major inventions in ancient China and is a major contribution of the Chinese nation to the world’s human civilization. It is generally believed that Chinese papermaking began in 105 AD and Cai Lun was the ancestor of papermaking, but this is not entirely correct. In fact, the invention and application of paper are far before. Of course, Cai Lun is also very important for the promotion and improvement of papermaking in China. He replaces the raw materials of papermaking materials with cheap and readily available materials, such as bark, rags, and fishing nets. Because of the rich source of materials, the output of paper is greatly increased, and it can then be extended to the average citizen. The improvement of various papermaking techniques in the future is mostly promoted according to Cai Lun’s method.
Ningbo Yunkou Xikou, still intactly retains the ancient papermaking folk crafts in China. According to the records, Ningbo Yunkou Xikou has a large-scale papermaking industry starting from the 9th year of Zhengde (Year 1514) in the Ming Dynasty. At its peak, the village had more than 300 paper troughs, producing 1,000 sheets per day. According to the calculation, 3 million sheets of paper can be produced here each day, which is a large scale, and here it inherits the original papermaking methods of ancient China. Similar to what is written in "Heavenly Creations," a piece of paper undergoes a total of 72 procedures such as water immersion, lime stain, batch fermentation, cooking, spread drying, daylight bleaching, beating, and papermaking. The paper produced according to this procedure can be stored for 200 years without damage, and is the most commonly used ancient paper.
Ancient papermaking can be divided into five steps:
1, Zhuo bamboo bleaching pond
The so-called “killing youth†is the name given to bamboo as a raw material, and bamboo is one of the important sources of ancient papermaking. Therefore, southern China where bamboo is abundant, especially Fujian, is the main producing area of ​​bamboo and paper. Bamboo is better. Papermaking artisans usually cut bamboos up and down the mountain, each bamboo is cut into 5 to 7 feet long. Then the pond is excavated on site. The cut bamboo is soaked in the pond for 100 days. With the bark off, the purpose is to soften the bamboo.
In the 19th century, the source of papermaking materials was changed from rags to wood because wood was easy to obtain and the cost was low. However, because the wood fiber is composed of lignin, the lignin will be oxidized, which is the reason for the yellowing of the paper. This problem is further aggravated by the addition of acid in the papermaking process.
2, boiled wood fire
The second step in making the bamboo paper in Tiangong Kaiwu is to dip the bamboo material into lime water and immerse it in a wood barrel for eight days and nights. After cooking the lye, the lignin, gum, and resin in the raw material are used. Impurities are removed. Then take out the cooked raw material and put it into a clear water pond to rinse it, then put it in the pot and soak it with lime water. This is repeated for more than ten days. After repeated cooking and rinsing, the fibers of bamboo gradually decompose.
3, the material into the curtain
The third step of the ancient papermaking process is to remove the boiled raw material and put it in a mortar to form a clay surface. The smashed raw material is formulated with a proper amount of water to thoroughly separate the fibers and soak the water into a suspension of paper fibers. , Pour it into the paper slot again. Then use fine bamboo curtains to filter in the pulp, paper fibers left on the bamboo curtain to form a layer of paper. A catalyst made of pure natural plant material controls the concentration of the paper fiber suspension.
This process was the most laborious in the papermaking process. Craftsmen of papermaking stood on the side of the paper chute and repeated their actions such as drowning and raising the bamboo blinds. Each time they took on a weight of 20 kilograms. In addition, when relying on paper, you have to rely on experience to copy paper papers that are too thin. Too many papers may be too thick, depending on craftsmanship.
4, covered curtain pressure paper
Scrap the bamboo curtain of the pulp on the press board, then carefully remove the bamboo curtain, and this layer of paper will fall on the board. The layers of paper are slowly stacked and squeezed with heavy objects to discharge the moisture from the sheets. The paper film was slowly formed under the weight extrusion and became a piece of four-squared paper. On average, each craftsman could only make 300 to 500 sheets of paper each day.
5, fire drying
The lane for drying the paper is a brick wall made of two bricks. There are gaps between the bricks to allow heat to escape. When the kiln paper is fired, it will be fired in the folder alley, and then a piece of wet paper will be spread on the wall. The hot air emitted from the gap will make the paper slowly dry. After drying, it is a usable paper.