Ming Silk Weaving and Sericulture

Timeline

1. 1561–1565Huzhou · Zhejiang ProvinceRural Huzhou and Jiaxing fed mulberry and raised cocoons in the spring silkworm season; farm households and workshops divided the work of reeling, producing raw silk to supply local weavers and the weaving and dyeing industries of Suzhou and Hangzhou, forming a tight mulberry–silkworm–silk industrial chain.
2. 1567–1569Suzhou · Jiangsu ProvinceIn the early Longqing era the Single Whip Reform was implemented in Jiangnan; after in-kind tribute was commuted to silver, some weaving burdens were lightened, private weaver households coexisted with official weaving bureaus, and jacquard weaving techniques for patterned silks continued to improve in the Suzhou–Hangzhou area.
3. 1568–1570Yuegang · Fujian ProvinceAfter the Longqing opening, Jiangnan raw silk and satins were exported through ports such as Yuegang to Japan, the Philippines, and Portuguese merchants; incoming overseas silver fed back into the expansion of sericulture, and silk goods became one of the most important export commodities of the late Ming.