JILI, China  There was a time when clean water, mulberry trees and tiny, squirming, milky-white larvae made this village one of the most famous in all of China.

The larvae spun cocoons, and the cocoons were spun into silk, and the silk traveled the world. It was made into gowns and garter belts, slippers and scarves.

Few products are as synonymous with China as silk. And for a time, no name was as synonymous with quality silk as Jili. In 1851, when the first World Expo, then called the Great Exhibition, was held in London, Jili silk was displayed by a Chinese businessman. It won gold and silver prizes handed out by Queen Victoria. The silk was later presented to her as a birthday gift.

This year, the World Expo is being held 80 miles northeast of here, in Shanghai, but Jili silk is not up for any awards.