Silk is the product of the silkworm, which feeds on the leaves of the mulberry tree. Near the end of its life cycle, it spins a cocoon around itself, known as a “chrysalis,” one step before becoming a moth. It remains in its cocoon for about fifteen days before it emerges. Silk is spun from the fibers that make up the cocoon. Silk harvesters kill the moth before it bursts through its cocoon so as not to damage the fibers. Fibers from several cocoons were spun together to make thread. This sample of silk thread was hand-spun by Sarah Barnard of Deerfield, Massachusetts, around 1836.