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THE STORY OF THE EVOLUTION OF SILKWORMS TO COCOONS AND ONTO BUTTERFLIES-

DID YOU EVER WONDER HOW A BASKET FULL OF COCOONS ARE FORMED IN THE FIRST PLACE AND THEN UTILIZED IN THE PRODUCTION OF THE FINEST TURKISH HAND-KNOTTED CARPETS?

 CATERPILLAR COCOONS ARE A PUPAL METAMORPHOSIS STAGE THAT BUTTERFLIES UNDERGO BEFORE REACHING THEIR ADULT STAGE.DURING THIS TIME,THEY RADICALLY TRANSFORM,EVOLVING FROM A CATERPILLAR TO A BUTTERFLY.IN NATURE MOST CATERPILLARS SPIN THEIR COCOONS FROM TREE BRANCHES,WHILE OTHERS CREATE THEM IN AREAS WHERE THEY KNOW THEY ARE NOT GOING TO BE DISTURBED.

IN MY CHILDHOOD I ACTUALLY WITNESSED THE WHOLE PROCEDURE.WE WERE VISITING SOME RELATIVES IN GEMİÇ VİLLAGE IN THE VICINITY OF THE CITY OF BURSA,WORLD-FAMOUS WITH ITS PRODUCTION OF MULBERRIES.WE WENT OUT TO PICK THE LEAVES FROM THE MULBERRY TREES IN THE MONTH OF MAY WITH UNCLE NECATI IN 1957.THIS WAS MY FIRST AND LAST EXPERIENCE.HE LOADED THREE BUNDLES OF MULBERRY LEAVES ON HIS DONKEY THREE TIMES A DAY AND BROUGHT THEM HOME AND LAID THEM ON TRELLISES WHICH WAS FULL OF CATERPILLARS AND THEY WERE BIG EATERS.DURING THIS EVOLUTION WHICH LASTED SOME FORTY-ONE DAYS THEY KEPT ON CONSUMING UNTIL THEY WERE AS BIG AS MY SMALL FINGER THEN UNCLE NECATI PLACED TINY BRANCHES NEXT TO THESE CATERPILLARS SO THEY STARTED  CLIMBING ON TO THOSE BRANCHES AND STARTED WEAVING THEIR COCOONS.IT WAS BREATH TAKING AND UNFORGETABLE.

YEARS LATER WHEN I RESEARCHED HOW MUCH PURE SILK FIBRE COULD BE OBTAINED FROM A HEALTHY GOOD SIZE COCOON I WAS AMAZED ONE MORE TIME.CAN YOU BELIEVE AS MUCH AS AS A ONE MILE FILAMENT CAN BE UNRAVELED FROM EACH COCOON.THEN WE STARTED FIGURING OUT HOW MANY COCOONS WOULD BE NEEDED IN THE MAKING OF A PURE COCOON SILK CARPET IN THE SIZE OF 2,17M² WHICH IS 4.0FT BY 6.0 FT AND THAT IS 24FT²; WITH 645 DOUBLE KNOTS IN A SQUARE INCH; IT WAS BEYOND BORDERS.A TALENTED WEAVER NEEDS TWO YEARS TO FINISH THAT SIZE CARPET. 25000 COCOONS WHEN UNRAVELED GIVES YOU 25000 MILES OF SILK FIBRE AND THAT IS JUST ENOUGH FIBRE TO GO AROUND THE EQUATOR ONCE.PEOPLE OFTEN TALK ABOUT MAGIC FLYING CARPETS FORGETTING THE REAL DIVINE MAGIC STARTS WITH THE CATERPILLAR AND IF IT SUCCEEDS TO PIERCE THE COCOON IT ENDS UP BEING A BUTTERFLY.

MY NEXT BLOG WILL BE ON THE SPINNING WHEEL...