Spider silk
Description
Thin, uniform, protein filaments spun from a spider. A strand of spider silk is about 25 micrometers (0.00001 in) in diameter. It is strong and dimensionally stable. Spider silk is currently used for crosshairs in optical instruments. A few times in the past, attempts have been made to produce fabric from spider silk. Examples were shown at the Academy of Science in Paris in 1710 and at the Paris Exposition in 1900. However, it took an enormous number of spiders and work to produce a fabric that was so sheer that it was of little use.
Synonyms and Related Terms
spider web; spiderweb; tela de araña (Esp.)
Additional Information
° G.Cook, Handbook of Textile Fibres:I. Natural Fibres, 5th edition, Merrow Publishing Co., Durham, England, 1984. ° M.Maggen, "Conservation of aquarelles on spiderwebs" preprints ICOM Commettee for Conservation 12th Triennial meeting at Lyon, Aug. 1999, p.525.
Sources Checked for Data in Record
- J.Gordon Cook, Handbook of Textile Fibres:I Natural Fibres, Merrow Publishing Co. , Durham, England, 1984