  In this article, we present the SILKNOW project (Silk heritage in the
Knowledge Society: from punched card to Big Data, Deep Learning and
visual/tangible simulations) (2018-2021). This project aimed to use Semantic
Web technologies to give greater visibility to silk objects produced and
consumed in Europe between the 15th and 19th centuries. Silk is a particularly
important material in European history, and it has produced some exceptional
objects of great historical interest. However, it is a threatened heritage that
is little known to the general public. We show the interest of using Semantic
Web technologies to give more visibility to such a heritage, by describing the
results we have obtained. We present the methodology used to develop a
knowledge graph, and in particular the different steps that were necessary to
create the underlying data model, based on the CIDOC CRM or CIDOC Conceptual
Reference Model. We also propose a CIDOC CRM-compatible extension to express
the complex semantics of the creation and production process of ancient silk
fabrics.
