Summary

A sample of silk cocoons from the "Eria" or "Arrindi" silkworm of India. Silkworms from Attacus ricini (N. O. Lepidoptera). Their natural food is Ricinus communis (castor oil tree).

The silkworms from which these cocoons are made were reared by the donor at Hawthorn, Melbourne, using imported eggs during the 1894 season. They were presented to the museum by him, when he was Secretary of the Victorian Silk Culture Association, on 19 December 1895. An original card catalogue entry reads that George Francis Hampson's volumes on Lepidoptera in Fauna of British India (1892 - 1896) "gives Attacus cynthia, Drury, as the "Eria" silkworm but in letters from India Agri. Research Inst.15/12/20 they are stated to be distinct varieties. Some hold opinion A. ricini is the wild form."

The typical weight of 800 dry cocoons is 1 pound (or 450 grams). The silk made from these cocoons was largely used for making strong durable cloths. Approximately 5 to 8 broods of silkworms were harvested in each year.

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