The story of genuine paper started in what is now the People's Republic of China. Similar to the Egyptians, the Chinese had, nearly 50 centuries in the past, invented a style of writing that used images. They too had been making use of several kinds of things to write on, usually strips of bamboo and woven silk and possibly the barkcloth they were using for other uses derived out of the Paper. Mulberry was made use of too.
History tells us that in 105 years after the birth of Christ a member of the government by the name of Tsai Lung, brought out paper, though it is clear from archaeological discoveries that it was in fact around in China for more than likely two hundred years before him.
During times gone by setting down words or pictograms was usually on some derivative of bamboo or sometimes on lengths of silk, which were known as Ji in those days. Nonetheless silk being expensive and bamboo being too weighty, these two materials were inconvenient. Then Tsai Lun thought of using tree bark, rags, fish nets, and hemp. In 105AD he put an idea to the emperor with regard to the production of paper and was endowed with high accolade for his idea. From those days paper has been availed of globally and is known as the "paper of Marquis Tsai".
Whether the above title is Tsai's entitlement or not, will probably not ever be known! However, the important factor must be that they discovered that if they ground particular plant-derived compounds into a mache, bstract spume, float the mache in water, sieve it out onto textile sheets and allow it to dry. When it dried, it congealed into a hard, tough sheet that was extremely light, and provided that it was not allowed to come into contact with water, proved extraordinarily resilient.
This easiest of paper making technologies is still in use in precisely a similar way around Tibet and Nepal, the first areas to make use of the techniques from South East Asia. A simple frame utilises a cloth manufactured from cotton stretched over one side, diluted grume is put in to the opposite side and moved around until it is level. Then it is suspended in order for it to enable the liquid to drain and the paste to dry into a paper sheet which will be able to be removed by peeling.
At some point in time a talented developer came to realize that manufacturing a frame with ribs and putting a fine bamboo mat that is removable over this, would let the paper-making procedure to be accelerated to a great degree. Instead of tying up a single mold for every parchment sheet, therefore severely limiting the amount of sheets that are able to be made at one time, a stack of sieved pulp could be built up layer upon layer, with just a piece of cotton thread between them which would help with separation at a later time. The stack would then be pressed gently, and each layer of mash transferred to a dry board.