History of Paper
Paper has been an extremely important material in the lives of humans. One of the more obvious uses of paper is for written tradition. Of course, paper was not always used as evidenced by the cave paintings of early humans and etchings inside of pyramids. However, to pass down stories and the history of culture, humans realized that recording these words down on something transportable was important. Thus, paper came about. The first findings of paper were in ancient Egypt around 3,500. The ancient Egyptians wrote their laws and various books on papyrus. Taking strips of the papyrus plant and beating it until it was dry made papyrus parchment. The Egyptians traded papyrus extensively with Greece and Rome.
Real paper originated in China around A.D. 2 and was used for wrapping and protecting bronze mirrors and padding poisonous medicine. Later in the 6th century, the Chinese created toilet paper and then later still used paper to hold tealeaves in order to preserve the flavor of the tea. Eventually, the technology spread throughout Asia and eventually into the Middle East with their conquest over the Chinese.
Paper did not become the multi-use product until the 19th century with the industrial revolution and technology boom. Two men in particular, John Gamble and Bryan Donkin, were able to create the first steam-driven paper making machines in 1803. This made paper a much more affordable product. Along with the paper making machine, the fountain pen and pencil dramatically changed the landscape of the 19th century. Suddenly everyone was able to write letters to their loved ones, keep journals, and buy books of all types. Unfortunately, this made the job of the clerk, or writer, obsolete.
Of course, people realized that paper could have so many other functions besides just writing. Like the ancient Chinese, people began wrapping things in paper, but this time for holidays. Wrapping paper comes in various styles and can mean various things. In China, red wrapping means luck. In Japan, wrapping gifts is extremely important and can convey a person’s relationship and even the social rank between two people. The Japanese have even created their own form of paper called washi, which is made from the Mulberry tree. Washi is generally tougher than regular paper. For this reason it has multiple purposes and can be used for clothing, household goods, toys, and even umbrellas. This paper is also used for the paper screen doors used in traditional houses. One of the great perks of having paper to cover these screens is that they are easily replaceable and can be changed often to fit your taste. Two of the traditional Japanese art forms also utilize washi paper: origami and Japanese paper dolls. Washi is made in a similar way to regular paper but uses far less chemicals and involves cold running water in its production. The cold water prevents bacteria from decomposing the fibers. There are two types of paper-making methods, nagashi-zuki and tame-zuki. Nagashi-zuki uses a screen and creates thin paper while tama-zuki does not use a screen, which creates thicker paper.
For the lazy present givers, there is also the paper gift bag that can be stuffed with the wrapping tissues. This saves people the hassle of actually wrapping a gift, something the owner of Pieces does very often. Tissue paper was also used in the 1900’s to play the comb, yes, an actual comb. The paper was wrapped around the comb and the player would hum with “cropped lips” in order to make different frequency of sounds. For those that don’t want to ruin their best comb, the kazoo makes a similar sound and is an advanced version of the comb.
Besides writing and wrapping, paper has extremely utilitarian uses as well. We use it for envelopes, paper grocery bags, cardboard boxes, tissue paper, toilet paper, money, and the list goes on. Not only is it useful, it’s also fun. Office workers decide not to recycle paper and throw it out the window during New Year’s Eve as confetti or cut it up into strips and have ticker tape parades. The uses for paper are endless.
Of course, we can’t forget that paper comes from a natural resource, trees. Due to the amount of paper we’re using, we’re suffering from deforestation. In 1690, the first paper-recycling mill was created. The process combined old paper, sawdust, and wood chips to create new paper. Recycling, however, did not actually come into the public eye until 1970 during Earth Day. Not only does recycling paper decrease the amount of trees that we cut down, it also reduces waste-disposal impact and many environmentalists claim that it is more cost-effective than producing new paper. Like any topic, there is always a flip side. Many people argue that recycling paper actually reduces the amount of trees in the world since paper companies actually plant trees to replace the ones they cut down. Not only that, but recycling paper actually costs more money since the recycling companies need to hire workers. Not only that, but it does not save energy since recycling remains a manufacturing process and produces waste of its own kind. Regardless of the debate, recycling paper has become popular due to the green movement that has occurred since the 21st century. More people are using recycled paper for printing. Unfortunately, there are still not enough options for larger businesses to obtain recycled paper cheaply or in the wide variety of colors that normal paper has.
Nowadays, many ecologically friendly companies have come up with new ways to think of paper. Some have found that paper can be created from rock materials while others have found new ways paper could be used in plastic packaging. With the advent of new technology like the Kindle and of course computers and the Internet, writing paper may no longer be necessary in the future. However, in current times, paper still remains one of the most important materials that have shaped our economy and imagination.