Papyrus paper is a laminated material made of thinly cut strips from the stalk
of the Cyprus Papyrus plant, which is native to the marshes along the valley of
the Nile River in Egypt.
Papyrus was first created in approximately 4000 BC, and quickly became one of Egypt's major exports. Because of papyrus' economic importance, the Egyptian rulers made sure its production technique was a closely guarded secret. Through the years, it was used as a writing surface for texts of many languages, including Egyptian hieroglyphs, hieratic text, Greek, Latin, Arabic and Coptic.
In 105 AD paper was invented in China. With the invention of paper, the production of papyrus declined and eventually stopped altogether. In 1965, an Egyptian scientist re-discovered the ancient techniques of papyrus production. As a result of that discovery, hand-making sheets of papyrus once again became an Egyptian craft.
Many papyri have survived from the early Arabic period;
there are, however, fe
w trained individuals who are able to decipher the early Arabic
script. Many other surviving papyri are written in Greek and talk of everyday
life. The dates of these range from Alexander the Great's takeover of Egypt in
332 BC to after the Arab conquest in 641 AD.
To make papyrus, stalks are harvested from the banks
of the Nile River. The outer green skin is then removed, and the inner portion
of the stalk is cut into long strips which are pounded to break down the
fibers. They are soaked for three days in water until they become clear and
bendable. The strips are then cut to length and laid on a piece of cotton
fabric, overlapping each other. Two layers are used, one horizontal and one
vertical. The sheets of material are placed between two stiff, absorbent
barriers. They are then stacked up, placed in a press, and squeezed. After
this, they are left in the sun. Every eight hours the absorbent barriers are
replaced. This process is repeated for 3 to 4 days or until it is dry.
References:
Introduction to the Collection: Papyrus http://www.lib.umich.edu/pap/introduction/papyrus