Description
THE STORY BEHIND
Samarkand paying tribute to the millenial history of the mythical Silk Route connecting the East to the West.
In the second century BC, the Han emperors, besieged by nomadic barbarians, needed allies and horses. To buy both, China ceded its most precious value: the silk. The Chinese decided to open up to trade and to deal with the exterior markets. Thanks to the Silk Route, China began to sell the silk abroad. The secret of its manufacture had been jealously kept under the death sentence for more than 2,500 years…
A century later, the Arabs who had conquered Persia, developed the breeding of silk around the Mediterranean. We had to wait seven hundred years to see the first silk productions in Italy and then France. Since then, we know that the breeding of small caterpillars hanging on the branches of the mulberry tree can give birth to one of the most fascinating, sensual and resistant natural materials. The silk threads make rich and sumptuous fabrics which are adorned with the most beautiful residences, as well as the most elegant clothing… Even today, silk evokes fascination and softness.