The Secret of Silk

The secret of silk, carefully guarded for centuries, brought wealth and prestige to Chinese empires. Legend has it has almost 5,000 years ago, a Chinese empress named Xi Ling was drinking tea in her garden when a small cocoon dropped from the branches of a mulberry tree into her cup. As she fished it out, the cocoon unwound into a single shimmering silk strand. Mesmerized by the thread, the empress gathered more cocoons, plunged them in hot water, unraveled the strands and wove the world's first silk cloth.