Early Papermaking
Paper as we know it today is made from a mixture of fibers and water that is filtered through a fine screen. The fibers tangle together and, once dry, form a sheet of paper.
Papermaking was invented in China more than 2,000 years ago. At first, the Chinese used the hemp plant or the inner bark of the mulberry tree for fiber. later, they pounded rags, rope, or fishing nets into a pulp to make paper.
Arab Muslims in Central Asia learned to make paper from several Chinese papermakers whom they captured during a war. The paper industry was established in Baghdad in A.D. 795.
Papermaking spread to Europe as a result of the Crusades and the Muslim conquest of northern Africa and Spain. Europeans did not make paper in large quantities until the 1400's. But with the new demand for printed books in the 1400's and 1500's, the demand for paper exploded. Europeans obtained fibers to make their paper from cotton and linen rags, so the demand for rags exploded as well.
Excerpt adapted from the "Paper" article, The World Book Encyclopedia © 1999