Who is the inventor of papermaking?

1. Who is the inventor of papermaking?

Who is the inventor of papermaking? 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 is good at what he can do, so he is called' Cai Hou Paper' in the world. "

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. However, since 1933, the late archaeologist Huang Wenbi discovered a piece of ancient paper in the middle of the Western Han Dynasty in Luonaoer, Xinjiang, he had different views on the invention of papermaking.

On May 8th, 1957, 88 ancient paper were found in the ancient tomb of Baqiao Brick Factory in the suburb of Xi, Shaanxi Province. This pile of ancient paper is very thick under three bronze mirrors. Although it has become fragments, the edge has not completely rotted.

This discovery aroused the interest of researchers. According to the research of archaeologists, it is believed that this tomb will not be later than the fifth year of Emperor Yuan Shou of the Han Dynasty (BC 1 18), so it can also be roughly determined that the age of Baqiao paper is before BC 1 18.

This time is more than 200 years earlier than the time when Cai Lun made paper. In addition, from 1973 to 1974, two pieces of hemp paper from the late Western Han Dynasty were unearthed at the Han Juyan site in Gansu.

What needs to be pointed out here is that1from June to September, 1986, archaeologists of Gansu Provincial Institute of Archaeology excavated a geological map in the ancient tomb of the Western Han Dynasty in Matan, Tianshui. This paper is 5.5 cm long and 2.6 cm wide. This newly discovered paper map of the Western Han Dynasty is the earliest street paper object at present.

All these strongly prove that China invented ancient paper which can be used for writing and painting in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty. In addition, there are some records about paper in the history books 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 painting took place in 9 1 year BC. Another example is the Biography of Empress Zhao in Hanshu, which records that Zhao, the younger sister of Zhao, who was favored by Hanwu, wanted Cao Weineng, a palace maid, to send poison and a "book of harmony" after Cao Wei's death, forcing Cao Wei to commit suicide.

According to Dong Yingshao, "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. The comrades who denied that Cai Lun invented papermaking thought that "it was the working people of the Western Han Dynasty who invented papermaking.

After inheriting the papermaking technology of the Western Han Dynasty, the working people in the Eastern Han Dynasty improved, developed and improved it. Emperor Yong, Fang Shang ordered Cai Lun to organize a workshop in Shaofu with sufficient manpower and material resources, and produced a batch of fine paper made in Shangbeizi, which was played in the first year of Yuanxing. After the promotion, it is' the world uses everything naturally'. "

This is a point in the debate. Another opinion insists that Cai Lun is the inventor of papermaking in China, on the grounds that "according to the explanation of paper in Shuo Wen Jie Zi by Xu Shen in Han Dynasty, all the papers mentioned in the ancient literature before Cai Lun were made of silk fibers, which were actually not paper, but by-products of bleached silk. Since ancient times, a Chinese-style plant fiber paper has to be cut, cooked, beaten and hung.

Baqiao paper is not real paper. The reason is that "from the outside, the paper is loose and rough, and the thickness varies greatly."

Through the observation of solid microscope and scanning electron microscope, it is found that most fibers and fiber bundles are long, indicating poor cutting. They are formed by natural accumulation of fibers, and cannot be regarded as real paper without basic operation processes such as cutting and beating. Maybe it's just leftovers from retting textiles, such as a mess.

Due to the long-term lining under the bronze mirror of the ancient tomb and the pressure of the weight of the mirror, the accumulation of fibers such as thread ends is flaky. In addition, the so-called ancient paper in the rest of the Western Han Dynasty is also very rough, and at best it is only the embryonic form of paper.

Cai Lun and his craftsmen summarized and improved on the basis of previous bleaching and manufacturing embryonic paper, and transferred the production of paper from raw materials and technology for writing to an independent industrial stage. Admittedly, "Cai Lun Paper" won't be made by Cai Lun, but without his "heart", this kind of plant fiber paper could not be made by local craftsmen alone.

Therefore, even today when embryonic paper has been unearthed, it is still correct to regard Cai Lunping as the inventor or representative of papermaking in China, which has sufficient historical basis. In addition, the record of Cai Lun's papermaking in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty quoted by China is mainly taken from Serina Liu's History of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Serina Liu and Cai Lun are contemporaries and should be credible. It can be seen from the records that Cai Hou's paper can not only pay tribute to the emperor, but also replace silk writing, and the paper quality must reach a certain level.

Some scholars also believe that whether Baqiao paper is a product of the Western Han Dynasty deserves further study. The reason they put forward is that "it is difficult to make a convincing scientific judgment on the production age of ancient paper before accurately finding out the life age of the tomb man."

What's more, the tomb disturbed the soil layer and was disturbed by external sources, which does not rule out the possibility that it was brought in by future generations; The Changmawangdui, which is also the tomb of the Han Dynasty, is intact, as if nothing had happened. The owner of the tomb has a name to check and the historical materials are reliable. Unearthed cultural relics are so rich, except thousands of Jane Eyre and silk-woven ancient paper silk paintings, but there is not a piece of hemp paper. Some researchers also believe that Baqiao paper has handwriting similar to regular script, which is similar to the handwriting in the Three Kingdoms of the Eastern Jin Dynasty unearthed in Xinjiang. Based on this, Baqiao paper may be the product of Jin Dynasty.

2. Who is the inventor of papermaking?

According to legend, papermaking was invented by Cai Lun in China during the Eastern Han Dynasty (63- 12 1), but there is also archaeological evidence that papermaking already existed, and Cai Lun was only an important developer to improve papermaking.

In China, papermaking is called one of the four great inventions of ancient china. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Xu Shen talked about the origin of "paper" in his first well-organized and systematic dictionary Shuo Wen Jie Zi in China.

He said: "paper" comes from the side, that is, from the side of silk. " .

At that time, the paper was mainly spun silk, which was completely different from the paper in the present sense. The invention, development and spread of paper also went through a tortuous process.

Other writing carriers: Before paper appeared, there were many different writing carriers in ancient China. Oracle bones refer to tortoise shells and animal bones (mostly the shoulder blades of cattle, which are large and flat and easy to carve), and were mainly used for divination in Shang Dynasty.

Guo Moruo, a scholar, believes that it takes at least 65,438+0,500 years for Oracle Bone Inscriptions to reach maturity, so its origin can be traced back to around 3000 BC. Gold, that is, all kinds of metal utensils, is the most widely used bronze, that is, the alloy of copper and tin, but also a small amount of iron, gold, silver and so on, which spread in the pre-Qin period.

At that time, most of these words were engraved on bells, ding and other ritual vessels, so they were called bronze inscriptions or. Stone: Stone-based literature, including inscriptions, stone tablets and cliff carvings, has been used from the Qin Dynasty to modern times.

Bamboo and Wood: Sliced bamboo pieces (wood chips), called bamboo slips (wooden slips), can be used to record characters and were widely used from the pre-Qin Dynasty to the Three Kingdoms and the Jin Dynasty. In addition, there are wide wooden boards as writing carriers, which are called bamboo slips.

Silk, an ancient aristocratic textile, is made of silk, which is light, soft and tough, and is an ideal writing article. But the output is small and the price is expensive, so most people can't afford it.

Mawangdui Han Tomb, unearthed in 1972, about 193 BC. There are many volumes of silk books in it, including history (such as Spring and Autumn Annals), philosophy (such as Laozi), medicine (meridians, health preservation) and so on. This is a precious human heritage. [Editor] The History of Paper 1957 ancient paper in the 2nd century BC was unearthed in Baqiao, an eastern suburb, and it is called Baqiao Paper.

This is the earliest paper invented by China in ancient times. After identification, the paper is made of hemp and a small amount of ramie fiber.

The production process is primitive, the texture is rough and it is not easy to write. Cai Lun, an innovator of papermaking technology, entered the palace in the late years of Yongping, and served as Xiaohuangmen (an inferior eunuch) in the early years of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

After Han and Emperor acceded to the throne, he was promoted to Zhong Changshi and participated in the planning of state secrets. Cai Lun has real talent and practical learning, and he is loyal to his duties as an official. He repeatedly violated the majesty of the emperor, remonstrated and pointed out the gains and losses of the court.

Later, Cai Lun served as an official order to supervise the production of palace supplies. It is believed that it was from this time that Cai Lun began to get in touch with the best handicrafts in the Eastern Han Dynasty and improved the papermaking technology at that time.

According to "Biography of Officials in the Later Han Dynasty", books and documents have been written with bamboo slips since ancient times. Later, silks with soft texture appeared, but the cost of making paper with silks was very high, and bamboo slips were bulky. Therefore, Cai Lun wanted to carry out technological innovation and make paper with cheap things such as bark, rags, hemp heads and fishing nets, which greatly reduced the cost of making paper. In the first year of Yuan Xing in Han Dynasty (105), Cai Lun reported to the emperor the achievements of improving papermaking. The emperor appreciated Cai Lun's talent very much, and promoted the improved papermaking technology to various places. In the first year of Emperor Xing of the Han and Yuan Dynasties (1 14), the court named Cai Lun Longtinghou, so people later called the paper "Cai Hou Paper".

[Editor] Information [Editor] Picture of ancient information: Cai Houzhi. Cai Hou Paper [Editor] The raw materials are mulberry bark, Broussonetia papyrifera bark, clover, clover and other plants. Editor: There are many auxiliary materials used in papermaking, and the most basic ones are cooking and bleaching.

The role of cooking AIDS is to remove impurities from raw materials to obtain fibers; The role of bleaching AIDS is to remove pigments from them. [Editor] The fibers of modern papermaking materials come from hemp, cotton, rattan, mulberry bark, sandalwood bark, hibiscus bark, straw, wheat straw, bamboo and so on.

[Edit] Process [Edit] In ancient times, referring to the upper right picture, there were five main steps. 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 equipment had been developed.

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.

[Editor] Modern science and technology have advanced by leaps and bounds, and the papermaking process has been mechanized. [Editor] Ground wood pulp is wood fiber obtained by mechanical grinding force, also known as mechanical pulp, which can be mainly divided into ordinary mechanical pulp, refined mechanical pulp, thermal mechanical pulp and so on.

Chemical pulp is a chemical method to separate fibers from lignin to obtain wood fibers, which are mainly divided into alkali pulp, sulfite pulp, sulfate pulp and so on. Semi-chemical pulp is a combination of mechanical pulping and chemical pulping methods, which can be further divided into neutral semi-chemical pulp, cold pulping and chemical mechanical pulp.

[Editor] Mechanical papermaking process: After the wood manufactured by the paper mill of International Paper is sawed to a suitable size, the peeling process is carried out. The logs are put into a big drum, and when the drum rotates, the logs rub against each other to remove the bark. The fallen bark will be used as fuel for the boiler. The peeled logs will be cut into square chips, cork chips and hardwood chips with a thickness of 0.25 inch. Because of its physical properties, wood is called wood by tiny cellulose fibers.

3. Who is the inventor of papermaking in China?

Cai LUN

In the early days of papermaking, the main raw materials for papermaking were bark and rags. At that time, the rags were mainly hemp fibers, and the varieties were mainly ramie and hemp. It is said that cotton from China was introduced from India at the beginning of the Eastern Han Dynasty at the same time as Buddhism, and was later used for textile. The bark used at that time was mainly sandalwood and Broussonetia papyrifera (that is, Broussonetia papyrifera bark). At the latest in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty in the 2nd century BC, China already had paper. The original paper was made of hemp fiber or hemp fabric. Because papermaking is still in the primary stage, the process is simple, and the paper made is rough in texture, with many loose fiber bundles and uneven surface, which is not suitable for writing. Generally only used for packaging. Until the Eastern Han Dynasty and the period of Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty, after Cai Lun's improvement, a set of relatively stereotyped papermaking technology was formed, which can be roughly summarized into four steps: the first step is the separation of raw materials, that is, the raw materials are degummed in alkaline solution by soaking or cooking and dispersed into fibers; The second is beating, that is, cutting off fibers by cutting and ramming, and sweeping them into pulp; The third is papermaking, that is, the pulp is made into slurry through water seepage, and then the pulp is picked up by a fishing machine (pad) to interweave the pulp into thin wet paper on the fishing machine; The fourth is drying, that is, drying or drying wet paper, and taking it down becomes paper. After the Han Dynasty, although the craft was constantly improved and matured, these four steps remained basically unchanged. Even in modern times, in the production of wet papermaking, there is still no fundamental difference between the production process and the papermaking method in ancient China. The development of papermaking technology is mainly reflected in two aspects: in terms of raw materials, mulberry bark and rattan bark were used for papermaking in Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. By the Sui Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, bamboo, sandalwood bark, wheat straw and rice straw had also been used as raw materials for papermaking, providing a rich and sufficient source of raw materials for the development of papermaking pages. Among them, the use of bamboo in the Tang Dynasty is

make paper

Bamboo paper made of raw materials marks a major breakthrough in papermaking technology. Bamboo fiber is hard, brittle and easily broken, which is technically difficult to handle. The success of making paper with bamboo shows that the paper-making technology in ancient China has reached a quite mature level. In the Tang Dynasty, processing technologies such as adding alum, adding glue, coating powder, sprinkling gold and dyeing came out one after another, which laid a technical foundation for the emergence of various technical papers. The quality of the paper produced is getting higher and higher, and there are more and more varieties. From the Tang Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, in addition to ordinary paper, there were various precious papers such as waxed paper, cold gold, staggered gold, rib, clay gold and silver plus painting, calendering paper, and various rice paper, wallpaper, flower paper and so on. Make paper a necessity for people's cultural life and daily life. The invention and development of paper also went through a tortuous process.

Who invented papermaking?

Cai Lun was not the inventor of papermaking.

Over the years, the textbooks used by China tell people that Cai Lun began to make paper in the Eastern Han Dynasty. However, several archaeological discoveries since the 20th century show that in the Western Han Dynasty before Cai Lun, China had "paper", and these two views have caused debates in academic circles for more than 40 years. A few days ago, a large number of ancient papers unearthed in Dunhuang provided a powerful proof: as early as the Western Han Dynasty, China had real papers.

The basis of "Cai Lun invented papermaking" comes from the Book of the Later Han Dynasty. Because the author of the Book of the Later Han Dynasty recorded this event very clearly, and the Book of the Later Han Dynasty was of great significance and status at that time and in history, in the absence of other historical documents as evidence, later generations decided that Cai Lun invented papermaking in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

1957 baqiao paper unearthed in Shaanxi in the late Western Han Dynasty, 1974 Jinguan paper unearthed in the former site of the Han Pavilion in Juyan, Gansu Province, 1978 Zhongyan paper unearthed in the Western Han kiln in Zhongyan Village, Fufeng, Shaanxi Province. These archaeological discoveries make academic circles object to Cai Lun's viewpoint of papermaking. Some experts believe that after textual research, these papers were all earlier than the Eastern Han Dynasty, so it can be said that there was paper in China before Cai Lun, and Cai Lun should not be the inventor of papermaking. Another group of experts questioned the age of tombs or sites unearthed from these papers and whether they were real papers. They think that although plant fiber paper has been made in the Western Han Dynasty in China, the paper is rough and loose in structure, and the papermaking technology is in the primary stage. Cai Lun made great innovations in papermaking, which greatly improved the quality and output of paper, and became the paper that China people are proud of today. Therefore, some experts pointed out that Cai Lun has made great contributions to the popularization of paper in China and the world. Even if he is not the first person to make paper, he can be regarded as the inventor of papermaking.

1986, ancient paper of the Western Han Dynasty was discovered again in Fangmatan, Tianshui, Gansu. Different from previous archaeological discoveries, the unearthed ancient paper is of high quality, with smooth paper, light and soft texture, and mountains, rivers, roads and other figures are drawn with fine ink lines. According to experts' research, this "birthday" of ancient paper was in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, more than 300 years earlier than the paper-making history of Cai Lun in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Therefore, this paper, the earliest known in the world, became the only physical evidence that China had excellent paper in the early Western Han Dynasty.

Recently, important discoveries have been made in the archaeological research of Xuanquanjia site in Dunhuang, Gansu Province. He Shuangquan, a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology in Gansu Province, told the reporter that more than 200 pieces of paper documents and hemp paper were unearthed at the site, which is the place where the most ancient papers were found in archaeological excavations in China. According to the bamboo slips unearthed at the same time and stratigraphic analysis, these ancient paper dates from Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty, Emperor Zhao and Xuan Di, Yuan and Cheng to the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Western Jin Dynasty. There are many colors and textures in ancient paper, including black thick, black thin, brown thick, white thin and yellow thick. Judging from the residue left on the paper, these ancient papers were mainly made of hemp fabrics and fine silk fabrics, which were used to write documents, letters and parcels. He Shuangquan said that the number, variety and time span of ancient paper unearthed in Dunhuang is the first time in China archaeological excavation. The discovery of these ancient papers not only strongly proves that Cai Lun was not the inventor of papermaking, but also provides abundant evidence for China to study the historical development of paper.

What was Cai Lun, the inventor of papermaking, doing?

In the last years of Yongping (75), he entered the palace as a eunuch. He has successively served as Xiaohuangmen, Zhong Servant, Shang Fangling and Changle Servant. In the first year of Yuan Dynasty (1 14), Andi named it Longtinghou (the fief was in Puzhen, Long Ting, Yang County, Shaanxi Province), with 300 food cities. Cai Lun is honest and prudent, and cares about national interests. He once "severely punished several offenders" and changed the situation. Diligent and studious, concentrate on things.

In the 4th year of Yongyuan (1992), Cai Lun took advantage of being an official and often visited rural workshops. When he saw the silkworm woman reeling, there was still a layer of short hair on the bamboo pole, which could be used to write, thus being inspired. He collects raw materials such as bark, waste hemp, rags and old fishing nets. In the first year of Yuan Xing (105), he wrote the paper-making process and method as a memorial, and reported it to Han and Emperor together with plant fiber paper, which was greatly praised by him, and Cai Lun's paper-making technology soon spread. People call this kind of paper "Cai Hou Paper", and all over the country "do whatever it takes".

6. Inventor and time of invention of papermaking

Who is the inventor of papermaking? 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 is good at what he can do, so he is called' Cai Hou Paper' in the world. "

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. However, since 1933, the late archaeologist Huang Wenbi discovered a piece of ancient paper in the middle of the Western Han Dynasty in Luonaoer, Xinjiang, he had different views on the invention of papermaking.

On May 8th, 1957, 88 ancient paper were found in the ancient tomb of Baqiao Brick Factory in the suburb of Xi, Shaanxi Province. This pile of ancient paper is very thick under three bronze mirrors. Although it has become fragments, the edge has not completely rotted.

This discovery aroused the interest of researchers. According to the research of archaeologists, it is believed that this tomb will not be later than the fifth year of Emperor Yuan Shou of the Han Dynasty (BC 1 18), so it can also be roughly determined that the age of Baqiao paper is before BC 1 18.

This time is more than 200 years earlier than the time when Cai Lun made paper. In addition, from 1973 to 1974, two pieces of hemp paper from the late Western Han Dynasty were unearthed at the Han Juyan site in Gansu.

What needs to be pointed out here is that1from June to September, 1986, archaeologists of Gansu Provincial Institute of Archaeology excavated a geological map in the ancient tomb of the Western Han Dynasty in Matan, Tianshui. This paper is 5.5 cm long and 2.6 cm wide. This newly discovered paper map of the Western Han Dynasty is the earliest street paper object at present.

All these strongly prove that China invented ancient paper which can be used for writing and painting in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty. In addition, there are some records about paper in the history books 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 painting took place in 9 1 year BC. Another example is the Biography of Empress Zhao in Hanshu, which records that Zhao, the younger sister of Zhao, who was favored by Hanwu, wanted Cao Weineng, a palace maid, to send poison and a "book of harmony" after Cao Wei's death, forcing Cao Wei to commit suicide.

According to Dong Yingshao, "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. The comrades who denied that Cai Lun invented papermaking thought that "it was the working people of the Western Han Dynasty who invented papermaking.

After inheriting the papermaking technology of the Western Han Dynasty, the working people in the Eastern Han Dynasty improved, developed and improved it. Emperor Yong, Fang Shang ordered Cai Lun to organize a workshop in Shaofu with sufficient manpower and material resources, and produced a batch of fine paper made in Shangbeizi, which was played in the first year of Yuanxing. After the promotion, it is' the world uses everything naturally'. "

This is a point in the debate. Another opinion insists that Cai Lun is the inventor of papermaking in China, on the grounds that "according to the explanation of paper in Shuo Wen Jie Zi by Xu Shen in Han Dynasty, all the papers mentioned in the ancient literature before Cai Lun were made of silk fibers, which were actually not paper, but by-products of bleached silk. Since ancient times, a Chinese-style plant fiber paper has to be cut, cooked, beaten and hung.

Baqiao paper is not real paper. The reason is that "from the outside, the paper is loose and rough, and the thickness varies greatly."

Through the observation of solid microscope and scanning electron microscope, it is found that most fibers and fiber bundles are long, indicating poor cutting. They are formed by natural accumulation of fibers, and cannot be regarded as real paper without basic operation processes such as cutting and beating. Maybe it's just leftovers from retting textiles, such as a mess.

Due to the long-term lining under the bronze mirror of the ancient tomb and the pressure of the weight of the mirror, the accumulation of fibers such as thread ends is flaky. In addition, the so-called ancient paper in the rest of the Western Han Dynasty is also very rough, and at best it is only the embryonic form of paper.

Cai Lun and his craftsmen summarized and improved on the basis of previous bleaching and manufacturing embryonic paper, and transferred the production of paper from raw materials and technology for writing to an independent industrial stage. Admittedly, "Cai Lun Paper" won't be made by Cai Lun, but without his "heart", this kind of plant fiber paper could not be made by local craftsmen alone.

Therefore, even today when embryonic paper has been unearthed, it is still correct to regard Cai Lunping as the inventor or representative of papermaking in China, which has sufficient historical basis. In addition, the record of Cai Lun's papermaking in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty quoted by China is mainly taken from Serina Liu's History of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Serina Liu and Cai Lun are contemporaries and should be credible. It can be seen from the records that Cai Hou's paper can not only pay tribute to the emperor, but also replace silk writing, and the paper quality must reach a certain level.

Some scholars also believe that whether Baqiao paper is a product of the Western Han Dynasty deserves further study. The reason they put forward is that "it is difficult to make a convincing scientific judgment on the production age of ancient paper before accurately finding out the life age of the tomb man."

What's more, the tomb disturbed the soil layer and was disturbed by external sources, which does not rule out the possibility that it was brought in by future generations; The Changmawangdui, which is also the tomb of the Han Dynasty, is intact, as if nothing had happened. The owner of the tomb has a name to check and the historical materials are reliable. Unearthed cultural relics are so rich, except thousands of Jane Eyre and silk-woven ancient paper silk paintings, but there is not a piece of linen paper. Some researchers also believe that Baqiao paper has handwriting similar to regular script, which is similar to the handwriting in the Three Kingdoms of the Eastern Jin Dynasty unearthed in Xinjiang. Based on this, Baqiao paper may be the product of Jin Dynasty.