During the second century, China began to produce writing paper with hemp or bark fibers. Later on, technological processes and equipment for papermaking were further developed.

 The Development of Papermaking

Papermaking Process in the Han Dynasty (206BC-220)

The variety of material played an important role in papermaking development. Hemp and bark were the main material for making paper in Han Dynasty, while during the Wei and Jin dynasties (220-420), mulberry bark paper and cane paper were invented.

With the development of society and culture, paper was widely used and the technique of papermaking continued to improve.

Bamboo was used to make paper later in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) as it grew rapidly in large quantities, and its long fiber, fine and strong, made it excellent papermaking material. However, the technique required to make bamboo paper was complicated. Therefore, people continued to look for other materials, experimenting with a mixture of different proportions of many kinds of plant fiber to produce different kinds of paper.

Zhi Yao (paper medicine) was an important invention in papermaking. In papermaking, laborers often put some plants mucilage (solution of gum, glue, and so on) in the paper pulp. In ancient times, the mucilage was called Zhi Yao.

Zhi Yao was used as a deflocculant (an agent which can prevent certain materials from sticking together), which can prevent the viscidity (sticking together) of textile fiber. Ancient Chinese people commonly squeezed out mucilage from the yellow hollyhock, carambola cane, rose of Sharon, and so on.

 The Spread of Papermaking

Chinese paper and papermaking were first introduced to Vietnam and Korea and then from Korea to Japan.

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