The Art of Silk Cocoon

Silk is made from the fibers produced by the caterpillar of an insect, the mulberry weevil, i.e. the silkworm. When a silkworm reaches adulthood, it uses the silk thread secreted by its glands to make a cocoon.

It does this by winding a single thread, which can be from 300 to 900 meters long. When his difficult task is finished, he sleeps inside the cocoon.

After some time, the caterpillar will become a butterfly, it will tear the cocoon to free itself. Thus, however, he shreds the silk thread rendering it useless. That’s why breeders place the cocoons in boiling water before this happens.

Thus, the caterpillar is killed and the cocoons soften and unravel more easily.

However, apart from the use of silk thread for the production of textiles, in some parts of our country they use the cocoon of the silkworm for artistic purposes as well.

The breeding of silkworms, the production and trading of silk was one of the main occupations of the inhabitants of Cyprus. The women wove rich silk fabrics for their dowries, but also for their clothing. Silkworms fed on mulberry leaves.

Silkworm cocoon embroidery is an important example of our folk art, since it is one of the basic decorative elements found in the houses of the 19th and 20th centuries. However, its manufacturing technique is also very interesting, since it is based on the reuse of materials, specifically the remains from silkworm cocoons.

An example is Frame with silkworm cocoons. The cocoons are cut into various shapes mostly bouquets of flowers and birds and sewn into fabric. Frames with cocoons were made in many parts of Cyprus. The frames were also used as picture frames but were also given as gifts at weddings.

Today, as an evolution of the use of cocoons, artisans/artists create various unique works such as handmade jewelry, wedding crowns, etc.

A wide variety of sill cocoon creations are available here at the Place!