TS'AI LUN

born AD 50, Ch'en-chou [in modern Hunan province], China died 121, China Pinyin Cai Lun, courtesy name (tzu) Ching-chung Chinese court official who is traditionally credited with the invention of paper. Ts'ai Lun was a eunuch who entered the service of the imperial palace in AD 75 and was made chief eunuch under the emperor Ho-ti (reigned 88105/106) of the Eastern Han dynasty in the year 89. About the year 105 Ts'ai conceived the idea of forming sheets of paper from the macerated bark of trees, hemp waste, old rags, and fishnets. The paper thus obtained was found to be superior in writing quality to cloth made of pure silk (the principal writing surface of the time), as well as being much less expensive to produce and having more abundant sources. Ts'ai reported his discovery to the emperor, who commended him for it. Important improvements were subsequently made to Ts'ai's papermaking process by his apprentice, Tso Po, and the process was rapidly adopted throughout China, from which it eventually spread to the rest of the world. Ts'ai himself was named a marquess in 114.