MELBOURNE, 5 February 2024: We all know what Silk is, wearing its curtas and sarees. But there is much more to it. We need to learn the thousands of years of Silk’s journey which travelled a few thousand years back from China to India, from India to Persia, from Persia to Rome and to the West. Today it is a global fabric, with China being the largest producer (and exporter) and India the second largest producer of Silk.
Aarathi Prasad’s 2023 book ‘Silk – A History in The Metamorphoses’, traces the history of this fabric derived from life itself. This year’s (2024) Jaipur Literature Festival’s interaction with Aarathi Prasad by historian William Dalrymple (The Last Mughal, The Anarchy…) fascinatingly reveals mind boggling historical facts candidly. Watching it from Melbourne online, pushed my knowledge of Silk by leaps and bounds.
“Silk is a natural fiber produced by silkworms. It is made from the cocoons spun by the larvae of the Silk moth, known scientifically as Bombyx mori. The Silk production process begins with the cultivation of Silkworms and ends with the extraction of Silk threads from the cocoons” says revoko.co.
Hearing Aarathi Prasad, now I know, domesticated Silk moth are blind, and cannot fly. Silk moth in the wild are different. And, there are incredible variety of Silk moth’s across the world. Then there are genetically modified (use of DNA) silk worms and that it is just not that only spiders and moth make Silk. Lastly, Silk is biodegradable.
William Dalrymple question to Aarathi, whether Silk was probably first produced in India, had no clear answer. Looks, China holds the fort as to where Silk originated first.
The audience Q-A threw up some interesting facts about archaeology, copying nature, mushroom Silk and much more.
