The history of genuine paper started in China. Like the Egyptians, the Chinese had, almost five thousand years in the past, brought out a kind of writing that used images. They too had been making use of many different objects to write upon, most commonly lengths of bamboo and processed silk and it is possible that the barkcloth they were making for other unconnected purposes derived out of the Paper. Mulberry was used as well.
History points to the fact that in 105 years after the birth of Christ a member of the government called Tsai Lung, developed paper, though it seems from archaeological discoveries that it was actually in existence in South East Asia for more than likely two centuries before Tsai Lung.
During olden times writing was usually on some form of bamboo or sometimes on strips of silk, which were called Ji in those days. However, silk being expensive and bamboo being weighty, these materials were not of great use. Around then Tsai Lun thought of utilizing the bark from trees, rags, fish nets, and hemp. In 105AD he submitted a report to the emperor on the process of paper making and got many accolades for his creativity. Since that time paper has been utilized universally and is called the "paper of Marquis Tsai".
If indeed this accolade is accurate, will probably never be known! Nevertheless the main consideration must be that they discovered that they could pound certain substances derived from plant material in to a mache, extract spume, place the mache in liquid, filter it onto textile sheets giving it time to dry. When fully dried, it consolidated into a hard, durable sheet that was surprisingly light, and provided that it did not come into contact with water, proved astonishingly tenacious.
This most simple of papermaking techniques is even now in use in precisely a similar way in Nepal and Tibet, the initial areas to pick up the techniques from what is now the People's Republic of China. A simple frame utilises a type of cotton cloth stretched over a single side, diluted grume is situated into the far end and moved around until it is smooth. Then it is left suspended so that it will allow the water to drain and the paste to dry into a parchment sheet which can be peeled off.
At some stage a very talented individual worked out that manufacturing a frame with ribs and putting a fine replaceable bamboo mat over this, would enable the paper-making procedure to be quickened enormously. Instead of using a single mold for each paper sheet, consequently severely restricting the amount of sheets that can be made at the same time, a stack of sieved mush could be built up layer upon layer, with only a piece of cotton thread between them which would enable separation at a later time. The stack would then be pressed slightly, and every sheet of mash moved to a board to dry.