Paper brides and novels on a sheet of A4

From a toilet paper wedding dress contest to the problem of toilet paper in space stations; from asbestos paper to toilet roll thefts in hotels: 10 paper curiosities from the strange to the ridiculous.

 

  1. According to several historical sources, Ts’ai Lun invented toilet paper in China in 105 AD
  2. Astronauts use toilet paper and then… it is pressed and sealed
  3. The first modern toilet paper was launched on 8 December 1857 by Joseph C. Gayetty. It was presented as a medical product (called “Medicated paper”) and contained an additive still widely used today: Aloe Vera
  4. The sale of fire-resistant paper based on asbestos began on 6 October 1869; the Papal State claimed ownership and used it to draft its most important documents
  5. The first and second drafts (1776) of the United States Declaration of Independence were written on paper made from hemp fiber
  6. The toilet roll appeared for the first time in 1876; up until then, toilet paper was sold in individual sheets
  7. The artist Tim Youd rewrites entire novels on a single A4 sheet; with an old typewriter, he prints the same sheet countless times
  8. The world’s largest piece of hand-made paper was made in Japan on 19 August 2009; it measured 13.9 m x 6.9 m
  9. Every year, New York holds a Toilet Paper Wedding Dress Contest
  10. 7% of hotel customers steal toilet paper…