ESHS/HSS Annual Meeting

Under the Mulberry Tree: The Kabul Cocoon and Vernacular Ecologies in Afghanistan, 1860–1960

• In Event: Beyond 'Botany': Plant Knowledges across South Asia

English Abstract

This paper traces the history of sericulture in Afghanistan between 1860 and 1960 through colonial reports, commercial records, and Afghan state publications. While silk production in Afghanistan remained relatively small in scale, it occupied an important place in discussions of agricultural development, rural industry, and economic modernization. Centering the relationship between silkworms and mulberry cultivation, the paper examines how knowledge about silk production was documented, circulated, and transformed across imperial and Afghan institutional contexts. By reading colonial observations alongside Afghan state efforts to promote and regulate sericulture, it explores how agricultural expertise emerged through the intersection of local practice, environmental conditions, and state-building projects. In doing so, the paper contributes to broader conversations about plant histories in Asia by examining how knowledge surrounding cultivation and rural production exceeded the boundaries of formal botanical science.

Author

• Marjan Wardaki