Volume one of five brocade-bound sets of 60 Chinese watercolor paintings. The watercolors show, in chronological order, the process of producing Ramie cloth, a silk-like fabric, in China during the 1820s. The collection is accompanied by a transcription of hand-written text, describing the steps in Ramie cloth production. These works are part of a long lineage of works by Chinese artists that depict the various processes in the production of materials from China.

These elaborate paintings were made on pith paper supports, a paper-like product made from the pith of a small tree. Pith was a popular painting support of Chinese export paintings as it was a sumptuous but inexpensive form of locally made paper, an alternative to pricier imported European paper. The pith paper paintings are secured onto the album pages with thin, blue silk tapes.