Paper

Abstract

Paper is a product made of cellulose fibers connected together to form a flat sheet. Raw materials for production include variable plant tissues from wood, cotton, hemp, esparto grass, sugar cane bagasse, or bamboo; nowadays also recycled paper is used. This entry provides a basic overview of the history of paper. Paper is also regarded as a support for precious objects: printed books, manuscripts, drawings, oil paintings and watercolors, gouache, pastels, graphics, collages, photographs, newspapers, and other documents. The durability of all these objects is determined by the time of existence of paper and depends on its resistance to different environmental conditions; therefore some basic information about the chemistry of cellulose is given.