Chinese archaeologists led by Zhao Feng of the China National Silk Museum developed a technique called enzyme-linked-immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect the presence of silk in carbonized residue in an urn coffin buried in the Neolithic Wanggou site in central China. The fabric is thought to have been used to wrap the body before it was placed in a silkworm pupa-shaped coffin for burial. Zhao thinks the shape of the coffin may have been intended to evoke rebirth after death in the same manner that a silk moth breaks through its cocoon.
     The findings are considered a strong evidence that the ancient Chinese began raising silkworms and silk production more than 5,000 years ago. "The silk fabrics at the Wanggou date back between 5,300 and 5,500 years. Previously, proven silk fabrics were unearthed at the Qianshanyang site of the Liangzhu Culture dating back 4,200 to 4,400 years," Gu Wanfa of the Zhengzhou Municipal Research Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology said.
           Examination of the sample with an electron microscope revealed fine yarns woven with four-warp twisted rods, and the yarns had been dyed before they were woven into fabric, which was then 'cooked' to prevent the dye from fading, Gu added. 0-*9He also said one of the fabrics was dyed before the weaving process. Ancient Chinese people developed the method of cooking the silk to prevent the dye from fading.
           In 2010, China National Silk Museum began key scientific research set up by the National Cultural Heritage Administration on the origin of silk. "As the testing technology has become more and more cost-efficient, we will carry out extensive sample testing in Yangshao site in Henan in order to map the origin and distribution of silk in this area," said Zhou Yang, director of the national silk research program.

Edited from Xinhua.net (4 December 2019)