Smuggling of silkworm eggs into the Byzantine Empire

Two monks, with the support of Eastern Roman emperor Justinian I, smuggled living silkworms into the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire in the mid-6th century CE, establishing an indigenous silk industry. The monks had observed silk production in China by 551 CE, and in 552 CE they sought out Justinian I, agreeing to acquire silkworms in return for his promises. Because adult silkworms are fragile, they smuggled out eggs or very young larvae hidden in bamboo canes, and the expedition is estimated to have lasted two years. Silk factories then appeared in Constantinople, Beirut, Antioch, Tyre and Thebes, giving the empire a European silk monopoly.