The origins of true paper started in China. Like the indigenous people of Egypt, the Chinese had, virtually 5000 years in the past, created a kind of writing that used pictures. The Egyptians too had been using many different objects to write on, notably lengths of bamboo and processed silk and it is possible that the barkcloth they were using for other unconnected purposes derived out of the Paper. Mulberry was used as well.
History tells us that in 105AD a member of the government going by the name of Tsai Lung, developed usable paper, although it appears from archaeological finds that it was actually being worked with in South East Asia for at least two centuries before him.
Back in ancient times writing was mainly on some derivative of bamboo or on strips of silk, which were then called ji. But silk was expensive and bamboo being very heavy, these two materials were not convenient. About this time Tsai Lun came up with the idea of making use of tree bark, fish nets, rags, and hemp. In 105 years after the birth of Christ he delivered a report to the emperor about the process of paper making and got high praise for his inventions. Consequently, from those days paper has been in use in almost every place on earth and is known as the "paper of Marquis Tsai".
If indeed this historical reference is relevant or not, will very likely not ever be known! However, the important factor must be that it was found that if they ground certain substances taken from plant matter in to a mush, throw out unwanted materials, put the mush in water, screen it onto fabric sheets giving it time to dry. After drying, it congealed into a firm, firm sheet that turned out to be incredibly light, and provided that it was not allowed to come into contact with water, turned out to be astonishingly tough.
This easiest of papermaking techniques is even now practised in precisely the same way in Nepal and Tibet, the very first countries to make use of the craft from what is now the People's Republic of China. A basic frame makes use of a kind of cotton cloth pulled and held over one side, very watery pulp is poured into the opposite end and spread around until it is smooth. Then it is suspended somewhere to enable the liquid to drain out of it and the mash to dry in to a parchment sheet which will be able to be stripped off.
There came a time when a very talented individual came to the conclusion that making a frame with ribbing and putting a fine bamboo mat that is replaceable over this, would allow the paper-making process to be accelerated to a great degree. Instead of using a single mould for each paper sheet, therefore severely limiting the number of sheets that may be manufactured at the same time, a stack of sieved paste was able to be built up layer upon layer, with only a length of cotton thread between them to enable separation at a later time. The stack would then be squeezed very lightly, and every sheet of mache transferred to a dry board.