Japanese silk


Japanese silk is silk harvested in the country of Japan. The silk industry there was predominant from the 1800s to 1950s, but is less common now.

History

The practice of harvesting silk began in Japan in the 3rd century, when the technique was adapted from their East Asian neighbors, China and Korea. They refined the techniques to make it distinctly Japanese, and Japanese silk became widely known as being of very high quality. They also produced it in large quantities making it profitable and lucrative for the Tokugawa shogunate and the later Japanese Empire and with the Meiji Restoration and the Japanese textile expansion it made Japan a world leader in silk, surpassing China in 1862. After World War Two however China ruled the silk industry once more.