I had kind of forgotten about this: The Story of Cashmere

Cashmere doesn't come from ordinary sheep. It comes from the incredibly rare Cashmere Goat. There are only five Cashmere Goats in existence, and they live on top of a very high mountain in Tibet, tended by Tibetan monks. The goats, since they are so very rare and precious, are considered to be sacred, and holy, and they are not allowed to be sheared.

Their hair, the sacred Cashmere Goat Hair, can only be collected after it sheds from the goat naturally. At least two monks attend each Holy Goat at one time--one monk to place a gold-embroidered white cloth in the path of the goat as it walks, so as to catch any sacred Cashmere Goat Hair that falls naturally from the goat, and one to walk behind and gather up the hair as it falls on the cloth.

Since the goats are cared for so religiously, they actually shed less than they would if they were left to their own devices, so very little hair is collected, only a few hairs per week, in fact. It takes almost a year to collect enough Sacred Goat Hair from the five Holy Goats to spin the wool to make one sweater. And only the very holiest of the monks are allowed to spin the wool. Only one monk is chosen every year, and it is considered a very great honor to be chosen to be the Sacred Spinning Monk.

Each year, if enough hair is collected for a sweater--and it doesn't happen every year--the Sacred Goat Hair is brought to the chosen Sacred Spinning Monk, who spins the hair into fine yarn which is then wrapped in one of the gold-embroidered white cloths that are used to collect the Sacred Goat Hair. The yarn is carried down the mountain in a golden casket and handed over to the best knitter in the village, known as the Sacred Cashmere Knitter.

The Sacred Cashmere Knitter knits the yarn into a sweater, using special golden needles that have been blessed by the Dalai Lama. When she has finished knitting, the Sacred Knitter's husband goes out into the valley and calls the monks back by blowing the Sacred Cashmere Horn. The monks then come back down the mountain, collect the sweater, and Federal Express it to a store selected by secret lottery, where it may be purchased at great price.

And that is why cashmere sweaters are so expensive.

Holy Goats: The Story of Cashmere