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Who invented paper?

April 20, 2007 09:30 IST
Paper

Even though we are increasingly veering towards paperless offices, it still continues to be part and parcel of our daily lives. How much do you know about its origin? Take the rediff business quiz and find out.

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1. Name the person who invented paper.
a) Charles Fenerty
b) Ts'ai-Lun
c) Lei-yang

2. The first commercial cardboard box was produced in...
a) Germany
b) France
c) England

3. Wallpaper as we know today was first used in...
a) England
b) France
c) Japan

Wrong! Try again.
Wrong!
The correct answer is England.
The Chinese glued rice papers onto their walls as early as 200 BC - but this was not wallpaper as we know it today. Paper as a wall covering was first used by the working classes in Britain and in Europe as a substitute for costly materials.

Frenchmen, Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf invented the first machine for printing wallpaper in 1785. Frenchmen, Louis Robert invented a way to make an endless roll of wallpaper around the same time.

The earliest wallpapers in England and France were hand painted or stenciled.
Correct!
The Chinese glued rice papers onto their walls as early as 200 BC - but this was not wallpaper as we know it today. Paper as a wall covering was first used by the working classes in Britain and in Europe as a substitute for costly materials.

Frenchmen, Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf invented the first machine for printing wallpaper in 1785. Frenchmen, Louis Robert invented a way to make an endless roll of wallpaper around the same time.

The earliest wallpapers in England and France were hand painted or stenciled.

4. Which was the first celebrity paper doll?
a) Little Fanny
b) Marie Taglioni
c)Queen Victoria

Wrong! Try again.
Wrong!
The correct answer is Marie Taglioni.
A doll portraying the renowned ballerina Marie Taglioni was published in the 1830s. In 1840, a boxed set was done of another ballerina, Fanny Elssler, as well as of Queen Victoria.

Little Fanny, was the first manufactured paper doll and was produced by S&J Fuller, London, in 1810. The History and Adventures of Little Henry was the 1st manufactured paper doll in the US, and was published by J Belcher of Boston in 1812. In the 1820s, boxed paper doll sets were popularly produced in Europe and exported to America for lucky children.

A paper doll is a two-dimensional figure drawn or printed on paper for which accompanying clothing has also been made. It may be a figure of a person, animal or inanimate object.
Correct!
A doll portraying the renowned ballerina Marie Taglioni was published in the 1830s. In 1840, a boxed set was done of another ballerina, Fanny Elssler, as well as of Queen Victoria.

Little Fanny, was the first manufactured paper doll and was produced by S&J Fuller, London, in 1810. The History and Adventures of Little Henry was the 1st manufactured paper doll in the US, and was published by J Belcher of Boston in 1812. In the 1820s, boxed paper doll sets were popularly produced in Europe and exported to America for lucky children.

A paper doll is a two-dimensional figure drawn or printed on paper for which accompanying clothing has also been made. It may be a figure of a person, animal or inanimate object.

5. Washi papers are found in...
a) India
b) Japan
c) Korea

Wrong! Try again..
Wrong!
The correct answer is Japan.
Washi is the Japanese word for traditional papers made from long inner fibres of three plants, wa means Japanese and shi meaning paper. As of the fall of 1994, there remain roughly 350 families still engaged in the production of paper by hand.

Though paper was originally made in China, the art was brought to Japan in 610 AD by Buddhist monks who produced it for writing sutras.

The inner barks of three plants -- Kozo, Mitsumata and Gampi-- all native to Japan, are used primarily in the making of washi.
Correct!
Washi is the Japanese word for traditional papers made from long inner fibres of three plants, wa means Japanese and shi meaning paper. As of the fall of 1994, there remain roughly 350 families still engaged in the production of paper by hand.

Though paper was originally made in China, the art was brought to Japan in 610 AD by Buddhist monks who produced it for writing sutras.

The inner barks of three plants -- Kozo, Mitsumata and Gampi-- all native to Japan, are used primarily in the making of washi.

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