Today, we made a trip to not only the Dublin Castle, but also to Chester Beatty Library, which is located right next to the castle. Having been to National Library of Ireland yesterday, I expected this library to be similar where we put our belongings in a locker and can't really get far into the library because we are visitors. It turns out, we had to use the locker, but this wasn't a library! This was more like a museum where exhibition was taking place. Books which people can rent or look at weren't present, but rather, ancient books were displayed for people to only look at. Due to the time constraint and our schedule, we weren’t able to go through all displays with the guided tour, so we ended up focusing on papyrus.
Papyrus is made from the Cyperus papyrus plant that grows in the Nile's water. It grows up to about a meter in water and can grow up to about four to five meters in height. The triangular shape of the stem of this plant makes it possible to withstand high winds. The ancient Egyptians started making paper from the papyrus plant over five thousand years ago, and this became one of Eqypt's major exports.
The modern word "paper" originates from the word "papyrus.” Egyptian rulers realizing the importance of Papyrus, made its production a state monopoly, and guarded the secret of Papyrus. When paper was invented by a Chinese official, the production of Papyrus declined rapidly and eventually stopped. Papyrus was lost until 1965 when an Egyptian scientist discovered the old lost secret of Papyrus hand-making. Dr. Hassan Ragab reintroduced the papyrus plant to Egypt from Sudan and started a papyrus plantation near Cairo on Jacob Island. He also researched the method of production. This discovery made Eqyptians able to produce Papyrus again.
http://www.egyptian-papyrus.co.uk/
Papyrus is made from the Cyperus papyrus plant that grows in the Nile's water. It grows up to about a meter in water and can grow up to about four to five meters in height. The triangular shape of the stem of this plant makes it possible to withstand high winds. The ancient Egyptians started making paper from the papyrus plant over five thousand years ago, and this became one of Eqypt's major exports.
The modern word "paper" originates from the word "papyrus.” Egyptian rulers realizing the importance of Papyrus, made its production a state monopoly, and guarded the secret of Papyrus. When paper was invented by a Chinese official, the production of Papyrus declined rapidly and eventually stopped. Papyrus was lost until 1965 when an Egyptian scientist discovered the old lost secret of Papyrus hand-making. Dr. Hassan Ragab reintroduced the papyrus plant to Egypt from Sudan and started a papyrus plantation near Cairo on Jacob Island. He also researched the method of production. This discovery made Eqyptians able to produce Papyrus again.
http://www.egyptian-papyrus.co.uk/