Life and Conditions of the People of Hindustan (1200–1550 A.D.) c6.s2.t1.45

c6.s2.t1.45

4. *Paper.*—It is commonly believed that the Chinese discovered the use of paper and that the Muslims borrowed the paper industry from them. Recent researches, however, have made it clear that while the Chinese were acquainted with the manufacture of paper, that was made from the mulberry tree, namely the *Kaghadh* or *Kok-dz* (usually referred to as made from ‘grasses and plants’) the credit of discovering pure rag-paper goes to the Arabs or rather to the paper-makers of Samarqand.⁴ Of the original Chinese variety, reference is made to the ‘white paper’ of Bengal, which is reported to have been made from the bark of a tree and was ‘smooth and glossy like a deer’s skin’.¹ Nicolo Conti refers to the use of paper in Gujarat without specifying its quality, but probably the Gujarat paper was made according to the improved method.² Amir Khusrau mentions the use of what he calls *Shami* (Syrian) paper in Delhi. Of this paper (which probably borrowed its name from Damascus and was of the improved type) he mentions two varieties, the *plain* and the *silk*, the latter probably being a kind of felt, although the point has not been made clear.³ The large number of plain and illuminated manuscripts and other documents that have come down to us from the period leave no doubt as to the existence of a paper industry. Mention is even made of a regular market of book-sellers in Delhi. It appears, however, that the quantity of the paper was not sufficient to cope with the demand, and people had to exercise great economy in the use of paper.⁴