In this era of digitalization, where people use soft copy to a greater extent, the hard copy persists. Paper and pen play a revolutionary role in our life. We write on a piece of paper to express, to convey, to record, to preserve, etc. From magazines, newspapers, books, diaries, etc. whatsoever do we use, they’re all made up of paper. To track the history of who invented the paper? keep reading.
As per the stats provided by the American Forest & Paper Association, Washington DC, every year, Americans use more than 90 million tons of paper. In American, the published material every year includes 2 million books, 350 magazines, and 24 billion newspapers. It conveys the high rate of paper used on a global platform. The Paper was not in the picture till 105 CE.
What were the materials used before the paper came into existence?
Before the invention of paper, there were other materials too, on which people wrote. The materials such as bark, silk, wood, leather, bamboo strips, etc. were heavier and expensive but used as a writing base. People were innovative back then! They followed the practice of carving notations into stone or bone. Another activity involved pressing stamps into wet clay and later dried to preserve words.
The matter of fact was that these materials could never get global appeal as they were expensive. People needed a lightweight and cheaper base to write on. As it is said, “Necessity is the mother of all inventions.” Paper fitted the frame. It was one of a kind invention that people accepted globally.
The History of the invention of paper by a Chinese named Ts’ai Lun
Ts’ai Lun was a Chinese court eunuch. The credit for the invention of paper goes to him. According to the ancient sources, he invented paper in 105 CE. However, other sources prove that it came into existence much earlier. The ancient Silk Road cities such as Dunhuang and Khotan in Tibet has samples of papers dated 200 BCE. It makes the exact date for the invention of paper dicey.
No sooner did the invention of paper took place than it spread throughout Asia, Middle-East, Europe, and all around the world.
Today, we are facing an utter need to save paper before it gets wasted. The invention of paper took place with a motive to provide the cheapest means of writing material. Perhaps, people do not realize its importance. Do not waste paper! It is one of the most crucial things granted to us.
Save trees to save paper!
