Abstract:

In order to analyze the historical development and evolution process of the technology and category of China ancient silk decorated in gold, the means of induction and study on the technology of ornamental gold were employed. By analyzing the complexity of the three technologies, it was thought that the gold powder and gold foil methods were used before appearance of the gold thread method. Besides, the silks decorated in gold were also classified based on the technologies and the history evolution of several kinds of representative varieties were expounded in accordance with historical documents and archeological findings. The difficulty level of three techniques depends on the complexity of the preparation of ornament gold materials. It showed that printing gold silk appeared before the appearance of weaving gold silk and weaving gold silk appeared previous to that of embroidering gold silk. The exquisite technologies and abundant categories reflect the prosperity and influence of the ancient silk decorated in gold of China. It is really worth using for reference by modern silk researchers.

Key words: China ancient silk, ornamental gold technology, sild decorated in gold, historical evolution