The Man Who Made Paper

T'SAI LUN
The Man Who Made Paper

Stone tablets had become a drag. And silk sheets were better for sleeping in than writing on. Enter T'sai Lun, the second-century eunuch who revolutionized the way we read by introducing paper to the Chinese court circa 105 A.D. Lun, a court official, was later promoted by Emperor Ho-Ti for his concoction of boiled-and-pressed tree bark, hemp, rags and fishnet. While some dispute whether Lun was the first to make paper, he was certainly the smartest: He got it in writing. Since then, every world-class writer has gotten between the sheets. After all, said William Faulkner, paper was one of only four things needed in his trade--the other three being "tobacco, food and a little whiskey."

~ 'Authors of Invention', Book magazine, Issue No. 19, (magazine now defunct)