The Story of Ramie – SUMMERWOOD Textiles

The Story of Ramie

From Seed to Finished Garment

ca. 1820s
Collected by Sidney & Mildred Edelstein

这是一套十九世纪用于外销的通草画^注图册，共有5卷本60幅，绘制于广州，由西德尼和米尔德里德·埃德尔斯坦夫妇收藏，现保存于美国费城的科学历史研究所（Science History Institute）。这套图册为我们保留了1820年代中国苎麻绩织工艺的记录图像，对研究亚洲手工纺织业的历史衍变具有重要价值。夏木（SUMMERWOOD）获得此图册的部分授权，现发表出来，以供读者作研究之用。

注：通草画（pith painting），又称为草纸水彩画、蓪纸画，即在通草纸（rice paper / pith paper）上采用水彩颜料绘画，是清代广州外销画中的一种。通草纸，取1~3年生的通脱木茎干里的髓芯，将其切割成薄如纸片，尔后用其作水彩画等。

注：全书分5册，每册12图，为苎麻的种植、收割、剥麻、分缕、绩纱、经絘、整经、刷浆、穿筘、织布、煮练、染色、裁制等等，各个步骤，均绘有详细水彩图画，并配有手写英文说明，可谓19世纪夏布绩织技艺的最完整细致的记录，极为珍贵。微有瑕疵的是，英文说明并未完全吻合图示工艺，且先后次序偶有错乱，我们未作调整，且配上了相应的中文说明，请大家参酌。

——易洪波（SUMMERWOOD）

_{Preparing of the soil for the grass seeds.}
_壅土备植

_{Sowing the seeds for the grass plant.}
_种麻

_{Pruning & thickening.}
_除弱培优

_{Adding manure.}
_施肥

_{Removing insects by hand.}
_去虫

_{Thinning the plants when they are about three months old.}
_移植弱苗

_{Watering plants that are about three months old.}
_浇水

_{Adding water and manure.}
_浇水施肥

_{Removing the lower shoots from the stem to increase its size.}
_抹枝

_{Cutting ramie plant.(The plants often reach a heights of 5 to 6 feet.)}
_刈麻

_{Forward the seeds. (The plants are now near manturity, as represented in flower.)取种}

_{Decorticating(The woody part of the grass, or ‘boon’, is cleaned and used as tinder.) 刮青}

_{Cleaned dry stem as tinder.}
_{杆芯裁作引燃物}

_{Cutting stem in same size.}
_裁杆

_{Preparing the grass to become yarn.}
_备麻

_{Separation of the fine and coarse fibers, which are later separately bundled. 缕分粗细}

_{Braiding the Ramie.}
_编麻绳

_{Cutting Bundles of Ramie}
_散麻扎梱

_{Stacking Bundles of Ramie}
_麻梱堆积

_{Weighing a Bundle of Ramie on a Scale.}
_麻梱过秤

_{Stacking Bundles of Ramie.}
_麻梱堆积

_{Carrying Bundles of Ramie.}
_{散麻成捆贩运}

_{Washing the ramie in hot water, when fivers are sufficiently softened, it is hung up in the sun to dry. 漂洗（煮练脱胶）}

_{Ply-joining the Ramie threads.}
_绩麻线

_{Twisting the ramie again to make the thread finer than before.}
_捻絘

_{Braiding fishing net.}
_编渔网

_{Prepared thread is wound into conical bundles.}
_经絘

_{Carrying bundles of wound ramie.}
_商贩收麻

_{Passing the thread through water.}
_分经絘

_{Passing the thread through water.}
_捻絘

_{To bleach the yarn before weaving, it is placed into hot water over a fire and boiled. 煮练漂洗}

_{The thread is wound by machine on to small rollers, which are afterwards placed in the shuttle. （团絘）}

_{Bleaching the thread before weaving.}
_纬絘入梭

_{Hanging yarn in sunshine.}
_晾纱

_{Washing the ramie yarn.}
_{浣纱（捣炼）}

_{Winding Spools of Ramie Fiber.}
_排经纱

_{Reeding.（Winding spools of ramie fiber.)}
_穿筘

_{Brushing rice milk.}
_浆经

_{Preparing ramie fiber for weaving.}
_络经纱

_{Weaving Ramie on a Loom.}
_织布

_{Roll of Ramie Cloth.}
_卷夏布

_{Preparing Ramie Cloth.}
_整理

_{Carrying Rolls of Ramie Cloth.}
_携布卷

_{Removing the rice milk.(Bleaching the ramie cloth.)}
_退浆

_{Rolls of ramie cloth.}
_卷布

_{Bleaching the ramie cloth.}
_煮练

_{Soaking in cold water and drying it in the sun.}
_水漂日晒

_{Dyeing Ramie Cloth Red.}
_染红

_{Wringing Out Dyed Ramie Cloth.}
_染后拧绞

_{Drying Dyed Ramie Cloth.}
_甩干

_{Hanging Dyed Ramie Cloth to Dry.}
_晾干

_{Laying Dyed Ramie Cloth Out to Dry.}
_平铺晾干

_{Pressing Dyed Ramie Cloth.}
_踹布砑光

_{Carrying Bundles of Dyed Ramie Cloth.}
_捆叠贩运

_{Cutting Blue-Dyed Ramie Cloth.}
_裁制蓝衫

_{Embroidering Ramie Cloth.}
_蚊帐绣花

_{Measuring and Cutting Ramie Cloth.}
_丈量修补

_{A Merchant with Ramie Shirts on Display in his Shop.}
_布商售衫

_{Ramie Merchant with Monkey.}
_麻商与猴

_{Man in a Ramie Cloth Robe.}
_{着夏布袍衫之男}

_{手写英文说明，5页}