Cai Lun

Hello! My name is Cai Lun. I was born a very long time ago, around the year 50 CE, in a place called Guiyang in ancient China. When I was a young man, around the year 75 CE, I traveled to the grand imperial palace in the capital city, Luoyang. It was a great honor to be chosen to work for the emperor. I served Emperor He and worked hard to be helpful in any way I could. Working in the palace meant I was surrounded by important documents and records, which showed me just how important writing was for our empire.

In my time, there was no paper like you have today. If you wanted to write a book or a letter, you had two choices, and neither was very good. You could write on long, heavy strips of bamboo. These were so clumsy and heavy that you needed a cart to carry just a few books! Can you imagine trying to do your homework on giant wooden sticks? Your other choice was to write on beautiful, smooth silk. Silk was wonderful to write on, but it was incredibly expensive. Only the very rich could afford it. I saw how difficult this made it for people to share knowledge, history, and stories. I thought to myself, 'There must be a better way!'.

I decided I would be the one to solve this problem. I spent many hours experimenting with different materials to find the perfect recipe. I looked at what people threw away and wondered if I could use it for something new. I gathered mulberry tree bark from the gardens, bits of hemp from old ropes, worn-out fishing nets from the river, and old cloth rags that were too tattered to wear. I mixed all of these things together with water in a big vat and mashed them until they became a soupy pulp. Then, I poured a thin layer of this pulp onto a flat woven screen and let all the water drain out. As the mat of fibers dried in the sun, it became a light, flexible, and strong sheet. It was perfect for writing on!

In the year 105 CE, after much hard work, I was finally ready. I proudly presented my new invention to Emperor He. He was amazed! He touched the smooth surface and saw how light it was. He understood right away that my new material was not only light and easy to make, but also much, much cheaper than silk. He praised my cleverness and ordered that my invention be used all across the empire. People started calling it 'Cai Hou Zhi,' which means 'Marquis Cai's Paper,' because the emperor also gave me the title of marquis and made me a wealthy man for my important contribution.

I continued to serve in the palace for many years after my invention became famous. My life eventually came to an end in the year 121 CE. But my invention, paper, was just beginning its incredible journey. From China, it spread all over the world, changing everything. Because of paper, more people could learn to read and write. Ideas, stories, and knowledge could travel faster and farther than ever before. So the next time you pick up a book or draw on a sheet of paper, you can think of me and my big idea that helped connect the entire world.