Wednesday, January 28, 2009

"Papyrus-N-Paper..."

...stylized a bit and dressed up in mellow yellow...
and presented here as drawing
#3 in my series of
Ancient Egyptian inspired
Zen-art.

Did you know...
"Papyrus is a thick paper-like material produced
from the pith of the papyrus plant, Cyperus papyrus, a wetland sedge
that was once abundant in the Nile Delta of Egypt.
Papyrus usually grow 2–3 meters (5–9 ft) tall.
Papyrus is first known to have been used in ancient Egypt
(at least as far back as the First dynasty),
but it was also used throughout the Mediterranean region."
(Source: Wikipedia)
So...
From Ancient Egypt in 3000BC...papyrus
From China in the year 105...cotton rags
From Japan in the year 610...mulberry fibers...
made into a Japanese paper called Washi.
Then...
Chinese discoveries spread through India...
to the Middle East where in 751 linen was used...
then
a paper mill built at Samarkand in 757.
The ideas spread again to Italy...where hemp and linen rags
were used.
In 1276 the first Italian paper mill
was built at Fabriano and until the 14 century
Italy became a paper supplier in Europe.
In 1282 the first watermark was introduced in Bologna.
...And that's only half the story!!!
WHEW!

Hmmm...All this info tends to makes one appreciate
one's temperamental little Moly just a
wee bit more, eh?!
LOL :)

"Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart."
~
William Wordsworth

14 comments:

kazumiwannabe said...

Beautiful, and very elegant papyrus!

TERI REES WANG said...

This is the best for me to keep in mind right about now...
"Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart."
~William Wordsworth

Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Beaten to it! The first word that came to my mind was 'elegant' and kazumiwannabe got there first...
This is lovely.

Anonymous said...

I'll third that 'elegant' :)

Lovely stuff as usual Margaret.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

As soon as I looked at this I thought "how elegant" and that was before I read the comments. Just a gorgeous piece.

I like the paper lesson too. It makes me want to read more.

soulbrush said...

what a lovely lithe image. i had read up about papyrus and taught about it to kids at school, facsinating.

Beth Baxter said...

I always enjoy your zen drawings.

studio lolo said...

Every single drawing of yours would make such wonderful stained glass pieces. Stunning!!

Elizabeth B Merriman said...

And I love the quote at the bottom, too!

3rdEyeMuse said...

hello. my name is Michelle and I am a paper addict ... thanks for your history of paper bits.

I love the drawing - the yellow really adds that perfect touch.

Elizabeth B Merriman said...

I just looked at all of your zentangles. I would love to know how you do them... do you use circle templates? I would like to experiment with some... any help you could give would be very welcome.

ebmerriman@gmail.com

http://maoma3.blogspot.com

Teri said...

This little piece is so elegant and enchanting. Great lesson also!

Anonymous said...

WHAT WONDERFUL THOUGHTS! HOW IS PINKIE??? THE GP SENDS!

Sherry Pierce Thurner said...

Not stargazers? Clematis? Just goes to show that everyone sees what they need to in your art.