The history of proper paper began in China. Like the indigenous people of Egypt, the Chinese had, nearly 5,000 years ago, created a type of writing that used pictures. The Egyptians also had been using various kinds of objects to scribe on, most commonly strips of bamboo and processed silk and it is possible that the barkcloth they were using for other unconnected purposes from the Paper. Mulberry was made use of too.
History tells us that in 105 years after the birth of Christ a government worker called Tsai Lung, developed papyrus, though it seems from archaeological digs that in fact it was around in what is now the People's Republic of China for at least two hundred years prior to him.
Back during ancient times writing was generally done on some form of bamboo or on pieces of silk, which were known as Ji then. However, the prohibitive cost of silk and bamboo being very heavy, these two materials were inconvenient. Around then Tsai Lun came up with the idea of making use of bark, hemp, fish nets, and rags. In 105AD he submitted a report to the emperor regarding the process of paper manufacture and received much praise for his inventions. Consequently, from those distant days paper has been utilized all over and is called the "paper of Marquis Tsai".
Whether this title is Marquis Tsai's entitlement or not, will likely never be known! Nevertheless the main factor is that it was discovered that they could pound some compounds derived from plant material into a mush, take away spume, place the mush in liquid, filter it out onto fabric sheets giving it enough time to dry out. When fully dried, it calcified into a firm, firm sheet that was really light, and as long as it did not get damp, proved incredibly dense.
This simplest of paper making technologies is even now in use in exactly a similar way in and around Nepal and Tibet, the first places to make use of the techniques from South East Asia. A basic frame utilizes a cotton cloth made to stretch over a side, diluted mash is poured in to the other side and moved around until it is even. It is then left suspended in order for it to allow the water to drain and the paste to dry into a paper sheet which may be removed by peeling.
It eventually came to pass that a developer with great skills came to the conclusion that constructing a frame with ribs and putting in place a delicate bamboo mat that is removable over this, would let the paper-making process to be quickened to a much greater degree. Rather than utilizing a single mold for each sheet of paper, severely restricting the amount of sheets that are able to be manufactured at the same time, a stack of sieved pulp could be built up layer upon layer, with just a length of cotton thread between them in order to facilitate separation at a later time. The stack would then be pressed gently, and every sheet of grume moved to a board to dry.