Hansan Ramie Weaving

Ramie is a nettle-family plant whose stem fibre is strong and cool to wear, and the Hansan region of Seocheon has woven it for well over a thousand years. The process is almost entirely manual and almost entirely women's work: the stems are stripped, the fibre split by hand and then by tooth into threads finer than hair, spliced end to end by rolling on the thigh, and woven. Because ramie thread breaks the moment it dries, weaving is done in a humid semi-underground room, traditionally in summer with the door shut - conditions that are the hardest part of the craft to convey. The finest grades were compared to a dragonfly's wing and were tribute goods. UNESCO inscribed the tradition in 2011. Hansan has a mosi centre with demonstrations and a shop, and an annual ramie festival in June, when the market for raw fibre also runs.

What you actually see

• The hand splitting - fibre divided by hand and tooth into fine thread.
• The thigh splicing - threads joined end to end without knots.
• The humid weaving room - semi-underground, where the loom must stand.
• The finest grades - cloth compared to a dragonfly's wing.

When to go

June, for the festival and the raw fibre market, which is when the whole cycle is visible. The mosi centre runs demonstrations year round but on a smaller scale.

Honest expectations

Weaving happens in a small humid room and only a few people can watch at once. Genuine hand-woven mosi is expensive; the cheaper cloth sold locally is often machine-made or blended. English support is limited.

Nearby

Gunsan and the Geum river estuary are close; Buyeo is inland.