The Chinese knew how to make silk more than 5,000 years ago. There is an interesting story about how silk is made among the Chinese that says that one day the Queen of China accidentally dropped a wild silkworm cocoon into hot water that was meant for washing hands. The next day, she noticed that the fibers from the cocoon could be spun. She enjoyed this fun activity and from that time on, she began to keep and raise silkworms so that she could use their fibers to make clothes.
Gradually, silk fabrics became known as the queen of fabrics due to their unique brilliance, beauty, and extraordinary softness. Its popularity among the aristocracy and the monopoly of its production in the hands of the Chinese for more than 2,000 years provided a lucrative business for its producers and sellers, to the point that it established a trade route between ancient states from western China to the Middle East and Europe, known as the Silk Road. The Chinese were able to preserve the secret of silk production for more than 2,500 years, and the Japanese were among the first to discover this secret in the third century.Around 550 AD, Byzantine Emperor Justinian sent two monks to China as spies, and by learning the techniques of breeding, producing, and transporting silkworm eggs, they brought the secret of this industry to Europe. After that, the art of silk production gradually became known throughout the world.
Throughout history, many countries such as France, Italy, Japan, and were popular as centers of silk production, and currently more than 20 countries in the world, including Iran, are mainly active in the field of natural silk production. However, China, India, Thailand, and some Central Asian countries are at the top of the major producers of natural silk cocoons and yarn.
The history of clothing and fabric production in Iran dates back to before Islam. In Iran, the flourishing of the silk industry began during the Sassanid era and reached its peak during the Safavid era.
