Reading Practice
The development
of the silk industry
Silk, a natural fibre produced by a particular worm called a
silkworm, has been used in
clothing for many centuries.
When silk was first discovered in China over 4,500 years
ago, it was reserved exclusively
for the use of the emperor, his close relations and the very
highest of his dignitaries. Within
the palace, the emperor is believed to have worn a robe of
white silk; outside, he, his
principal wife, and the heir to the throne wore yellow, the
colour of the earth.
Gradually silk came into more general use, and the various
classes of Chinese society
began wearing tunics of silk. As well as being used for
clothing and decoration, silk was
quite quickly put to industrial use, and rapidly became one
of the principal elements of the
Chinese economy. It was used in the production of musical
instruments, as string for
fishing, and even as the world’s first luxury paper.
Eventually even the common people
were able to wear garments of silk.
During the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), silk ceased to be a
mere fabric and became a
form of currency. Farmers paid their taxes in grain and
silk, and silk was used to pay civil
servants and to reward subjects for outstanding services.
Values were calculated in lengths
of silk as they had previously been calculated in weight of
gold. Before long, silk became a
currency used in trade with foreign countries, which
continued into the Tang dynasty (616-
907 AD). It is possible that this added importance was the
result of a major increase in
production. Silk also found its way so thoroughly into the
Chinese language that 230 of the
5,000 most common characters of Mandarin* have 'silk' as
their key component. Silk
became a precious commodity, highly sought after by other
countries from an early date,
and it is believed that the silk trade.
actually, existed before the Silk Road1" was officially
opened in the second century BC. An
Egyptian mummy with a silk thread in her hair, dating from
1070 BC, has been discovered
in the village of Deir el Medina near the Valley of the
Kings, and is probably the earliest
evidence of the silk trade. During the second century BC,
the Chinese emperor Han Wu
Di’s ambassadors travelled as far west as Persia and Mesopotamia,
bearing gifts including
silks. A range of important finds of Chinese silks have also
been made along the Silk Road.
One of the most dramatic of these finds was some Tang silk
discovered in 1900. It is
believed that around 1015 AD Buddhist monks, possibly
alarmed by the threat of invasion
by Tibetan people, had sealed more than ten thousand
manuscripts and silk paintings, silk
banners and textiles in caves near Dunhuang, a trading
station on the Silk Road in northwest China.
Some historians believe the first Europeans to set eyes upon
the fabulous fabric were the
Roman legions of Marcus Licinius Crassus, Governor of Syria.
According to certain
accounts of the period, at an important battle near the
Euphrates River in 53 BC, the
Roman soldiers were so startled by the bright silken banners
of the enemy that they fled in
panic. Yet, within decades Chinese silks were widely worn by
the rich and noble families of
Rome. The Roman Emperor Heliogabalus (218-222 AD) wore
nothing but silk. By 380 AD,
the Roman historian Marcellinnus Ammianus reported that. The
use of silk, which was
one confined to the nobility, has now spread to all classes
without distinction - even to the
lowest. The desire for silk continued to increase over the
centuries. Despite this demand,
the price of silk remained very high.
In spite of their secrecy about production methods, the
Chinese eventually lost them
monopoly on silk production. Knowledge of silk production
methods reached Korea around
200 BC, when waves of Chinese immigrants arrived there.
Shortly after 300 AD, it travelled
westward, and the cultivation of the silkworm was
established in India.
Around 550 AD silk production reached the Middle East.
Records indicate that two monks
from Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), capital of the
Byzantine Empire, appeared at
their emperor’s court with silkworm eggs which they had
obtained secretly, and hidden in
their hollow bamboo walking sticks. Under their supervision
the eggs hatched into worms,
and the worms spun silk threads. Byzantium was in the silk
business at last. The Byzantine
church and state created imperial workshops, monopolising
production and keeping the
secret to themselves. This allowed a silk industry to be
established, undercutting the
market for ordinary-grade Chinese silk. However, high
quality silk textiles, woven in China
especially for the Middle Eastern market, continued to
achieve high prices in the West, and
trade along the Silk Road continued as before. By the sixth
century the Persians, too, had
mastered the art of silk weaving, developing their own rich
patterns and techniques. But it
wasn’t until the 13th century that Italy began silk
production, with the introduction of 2,000
skilled silk weavers from Constantinople. Eventually, silk
production became widespread
throughout Europe.
World silk production has approximately doubled during the
last 30 years in spite of
manmade fibres replacing certain uses of silk. Before this
period, China and Japan were
the two main producers, together manufacturing more than 50
per cent of world production
each year. After the late 1970s, however, China dramatically
increased its silk production,
and once again became the world’s leading producer.
Questions 1-7
Complete the notes below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet.
Chinese silk
Early Uses
Clothing
-at
first, silk only available to Chinese of high rank
-emperor
wore 1..................... silk indoors
In industry
-silk
items included parts of musical instruments, fishing strings and
2.....................
Currency
-silk
was used as payment of 3..................... as well as for wages and rewards
-silk
replaced 4..................... as a unit of value
-silk
soon used as payment in 5..................... trade
Evidence of silk trade
1070 BC, Egypt:
- hair of a 6.....................
contained silk 2nd century BC, Persia and Mesopotamia: gifts of
silk were presented by Chinese ambassadors1015
AD, north-west China: silk objects
were
hidden inside 7.....................
Questions 8-13
Do the following statements agree with the information given
in Reading Passage 1 ?
In boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
8..................... Their first sight of silk created
fear among Roman soldiers.
9..................... The quality of Chinese silk imported
by the early Romans varied widely.
10..................... The Byzantine emperor first acquired
silkworm eggs from the Chinese
emperor.
11..................... The price of high-grade Chinese silk
fell due to competition from Middle Access
Eastern producers.
12..................... Silk was produced in the Middle East
several centuries before it was
produced in Europe.
13..................... Global silk production has declined
in recent years.
Solution:
1. white 8. TRUE
2. paper 9. NOT GIVEN
3. taxes 10. FALSE
4. gold 11. FALSE
5. foreign 12. TRUE
6. mummy 13. FALSE
7. caves
Notes Completion (Questions 1-7)
1. white
- Reason: The passage states that the emperor wore a robe of white silk inside the palace.
- Location: “Within the palace, the emperor is believed to have worn a robe of white silk.”
2. paper
- Reason: The passage mentions that silk was used to make musical instruments, fishing strings, and luxury paper.
- Location: “It was used in the production of musical instruments, as string for fishing, and even as the world’s first luxury paper.”
3. taxes
- Reason: The passage states that farmers paid their taxes in silk.
- Location: “Farmers paid their taxes in grain and silk, and silk was used to pay civil servants and to reward subjects for outstanding services.”
4. gold
- Reason: The passage states that silk replaced gold as a unit of value.
- Location: “Values were calculated in lengths of silk as they had previously been calculated in weight of gold.”
5. foreign
- Reason: The passage mentions that silk became a currency used in foreign trade.
- Location: “Before long, silk became a currency used in trade with foreign countries.”
6. mummy
- Reason: The passage states that a silk thread was found in the hair of an Egyptian mummy from 1070 BC.
- Location: “An Egyptian mummy with a silk thread in her hair, dating from 1070 BC, has been discovered in the village of Deir el Medina near the Valley of the Kings.”
7. caves
- Reason: The passage states that Buddhist monks sealed silk objects inside caves in north-west China.
- Location: “Around 1015 AD Buddhist monks … had sealed more than ten thousand manuscripts and silk paintings, silk banners and textiles in caves near Dunhuang, a trading station on the Silk Road in north-west China.”
True/False/Not Given (Questions 8-13)
8. TRUE
- Reason: The passage states that Roman soldiers were so startled by the bright silk banners that they fled in panic.
- Location: “At an important battle near the Euphrates River in 53 BC, the Roman soldiers were so startled by the bright silken banners of the enemy that they fled in panic.”
9. NOT GIVEN
- Reason: The passage mentions that Chinese silk was widely worn by Romans, but it does not mention whether the quality varied.
- Location: No direct reference to variations in quality of imported silk.
10. FALSE
- Reason: The passage states that two monks from Constantinople secretly obtained silkworm eggs and brought them to their emperor, not from the Chinese emperor.
- Location: “Records indicate that two monks from Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), capital of the Byzantine Empire, appeared at their emperor’s court with silkworm eggs which they had obtained secretly.”
11. FALSE
- Reason: The passage states that high-quality Chinese silk continued to achieve high prices despite Middle Eastern production.
- Location: “High-quality silk textiles, woven in China especially for the Middle Eastern market, continued to achieve high prices in the West.”
12. TRUE
- Reason: The passage states that silk production reached the Middle East around 550 AD, but Europe only started producing silk in the 13th century.
- Location: “Around 550 AD silk production reached the Middle East.” and “But it wasn’t until the 13th century that Italy began silk production.”
13. FALSE
- Reason: The passage states that world silk production has doubled in the last 30 years, meaning it has increased, not declined.
- Location: “World silk production has approximately doubled during the last 30 years.”
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