Silk weaving has been present in Cyprus since the Byzantine period. The cultivation of silkworms and the production of silk –sericulture– was mainly an industrial process used to manufacture durable linen and clothing but was also approached in villages as a type of folk art. It is likely that silk cocoon embroidery was originally a way of utilising cocoons unsuitable for silk production. Using empty silk cocoons cut into shapes, Cypriots decorated velvet, satin or other fabrics with elaborate nature-inspired compositions. The family remained the centre of production, spinning and weaving of silk, and sericulture was reduced to a form of home craft. The frames decorated with silk cocoons show how natural materials can be used in different processes and roached in new ways.
