He was a civil servant at the royal court in the year 105 AD to present examples of paper to Emperor Ho Ti. Chinese records about Ts'ai Lun, this (contained in the writing of the official history of the Han dynasty) completely forthright and trustworthy, without the slightest no smells of magic or legend. Chinese people always associate the name of Ts'ai Lun with the invention of paper, and his name is famous throughout China.
Not much is known about the life of Ts'ai Lun, unless there is mention he was the kebirian. Also recorded emperor very excited by Ts'ai Lun, and he made him to be promoted, it can be a knighthood and of itself so barons. But more recently, he was involved in a plot anti palace dragged to his downfall. Chinese records mention --sesudah he disepak-- Ts'ai Lun shower clean, wearing the most beautiful dress, then drank poison.
The use of paper became widespread in China in the 2nd century, and within a few centuries the Chinese were exporting paper to Asian countries. For a long time China's secretive way the paper fabrication. In the year 751, however, some experts restorer paper captured by the Arabs so that within a short time the paper was being manufactured in Baghdad and Sarmarkand. Art of papermaking gradually spread throughout the Arab world, and in the 12th century the Europeans learned this technique. The use of paper began to spread, and after Gutenberg invented modern printing, paper replaced parchment as a writing material in the West.
Now the use of paper is so general, so that nobody could imagine a world without paper forms. In China before Ts'ai Lun, most books were made of bamboo. Obviously, such books were extremely heavy and clumsy. Indeed, there is also a book made of silk but the price is very expensive for the public. In the West, there --sebelum kertas-- books were written on goat or calf leather. This material had replaced papyrus favored by the Greeks, Romans and Egyptians. Both parchment and papyrus are not only scarce, but also expensive.
That books and other written materials may be produced so cheaply and in a massive amount. This is all thanks to the paper. Indeed, the significance of the paper is not so prominent in the absence of printing machines, printing machines but otherwise was not much meaning in the absence of paper material are so many and so cheap.
Rather abstruse question now: Who should be ranked higher on the Ts'ai Lun and Gutenberg? Although I consider the complex between these two men of almost equal importance, but finally I took the decision level Ts'ai Lun slightly higher in the order than the Gutenberg. The reasons I like this: (1) Paper is used a great deal solely a writing material. (2) Ts'ai Lun ahead of Gutenberg and Gutenberg may be unthinkable to make printing machine if only the paper was not found. (3) If only one of them did the creation, my guess without any engine created by Gutenberg books still be produced by the print system block (which has long been known long before Gutenberg) through a combination of paper rather than through the combination with sheepskin.
Is it appropriate to include both Ts'ai Lun and Gutenberg in order of the most influential people in the world? In order to realize the full importance of the invention of paper and printing, it is necessary to understand the development of Western culture and Chinese. Before entering the 2nd century AD Chinese culture is still in tarap lower than Western culture. But in a thousand years BC, the progress China has exceeded the West even in the 7th century and 8th Chinese culture in many ways, a cultural powerhouse in the world. After the 15th century AD, Western speeding leaving China behind. Various cultural settlement regarding these changes has been developed, but the theories seem to ignore one important aspect that actually I believe is the simplest explanation.
Bamboo pieces washed and dipped into the water right as a preliminary step preparation of paper fabrication.
Certainly true, agriculture and writing developed earlier in the Middle East than China. But this would not explain why Chinese culture is so slow and are behind the West. One abstruse problem, in my opinion, was that prior to Ts'ai Lun there was no any quality writing in China. In the Western world Papyrus was available, and despite the material decline, papyrus rolls were infinitely better books written on quality than wood or bamboo. Shortage of material to write an obstacle to the progress of Chinese culture. A Chinese scholar require a cart to carry a number of books that it deems useful. One can imagine the difficulty of trying to administration with such circumstances.
The discovery paper by Ts'ai Lun overhauled the situation. With a number of writing materials available, Chinese culture jumped so fast that in just a few centuries has been able to keep the West. Naturally, the political divisions in the West into an important cause, but this was not the main cause. In the 4th century AD China was politically fragmented, but let that culture still progressed so quickly. In the following centuries, when progress in the West halting, China actually managed to achieve important discoveries such as the compass, gunpowder, and block printing. Since the paper fell less than goat skin and can be obtained in large quantities, the state is now reversed.
After the Western people started using paper, they were able to sit face to face with China, even succeeded in narrowing the cultural gap. The writings of Marco Polo stressed his belief that even in the 13th century China was far above Europe in terms of prosperity.
Why, then China is behind Europe? Various complex cultural explanations have been offered, but perhaps a simple technological one can find the answer. In the 15th century in Europe, a genius named Johann Gutenberg developed a way of producing a book as much as possible. As a result of the discovery, European culture thrive. Since China does not have a person like Gutenberg, China persisted in block printing system so that the development of its culture crawl more slowly.
Pulverization culms
Make sheets of paper
Pressing a sheet of paper
Drying the sheets of paper
If one accepts the analysis above, he can not be forced to the conclusion that Ts'ai Lun and Gutenberg are two human beings, a central figure in world history.
Indeed, Ts'ai Lun was in the front row of other inventors for several reasons. Most inventions are a product of his time and can also happen even if the person who actually invented them had never lived. However, this situation does not apply at all to the issue of the paper. People in Europe do not start producing until a thousand years after Ts'ai Lun. They had an open mind and membikinnya after learned the process from the Arabs. In this connection, even after they had witnessed how the Chinese producing paper, other Asian nations were never able to produce it. Clearly, the invention by producing the paper is not an easy task, can not just be done by moderately advanced culture, but rather required the contribution of some individuals who have outstanding advantages. Ts'ai Lun was such an individual, and how to make paper does (besides, introduced about 1800 AD) basically the same what people do up to now.
This is the reason why I put both Ts'ai Lun and Gutenberg both in the order of the first ten influential people in this book, with Ts'ai Lun ahead of Gutenberg.
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Hundred Most Influential People in History
Michael H. Hart, 1978
Translation H. Mahbub Djunaidi, 1982
PT. World Pustaka Jaya
Jln. Kramat II, No. 31A
Central Jakarta