Spindle Whorl
Item number A4368 from the MOA: University of British Columbia.
Item number A4368 from the MOA: University of British Columbia.
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Small, flat, disc-shaped spindle whorl with central hole. Made of laminated wood (three layers) with no surface decoration. Five small holes, stained black at their edges from contact with metal, surround the central hole. Yellow-brown in colour.
Spindle whorls are used in the spinning of wool. Anthropologist Homer Barnett (1955) notes that spindle whorls used by the southern Coast Salish of British Columbia are larger than those used in the north, with a shaft that is twice as long as the whorl. In the north, fibres were spun on smaller whorls that were "twirled between the leg and palm (1955:118)." By contrast, the larger whorls were used to spin fibres that were suspended from overhead. This arrangement created a tension in the roving. Johnson and Bernick (1986) report that traditionally several different techniques were used for turning the spindle. Contemporary weavers, however, now make use of a spinning machine that is similar in appearance to a treadle sewing machine. This spindle whorl is of the smaller variety, generally used in the north.
weaving; recylcing; spinning
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weaving; recylcing; spinning
Small, flat, disc-shaped spindle whorl with central hole. Made of laminated wood (three layers) with no surface decoration. Five small holes, stained black at their edges from contact with metal, surround the central hole. Yellow-brown in colour.
Spindle whorls are used in the spinning of wool. Anthropologist Homer Barnett (1955) notes that spindle whorls used by the southern Coast Salish of British Columbia are larger than those used in the north, with a shaft that is twice as long as the whorl. In the north, fibres were spun on smaller whorls that were "twirled between the leg and palm (1955:118)." By contrast, the larger whorls were used to spin fibres that were suspended from overhead. This arrangement created a tension in the roving. Johnson and Bernick (1986) report that traditionally several different techniques were used for turning the spindle. Contemporary weavers, however, now make use of a spinning machine that is similar in appearance to a treadle sewing machine. This spindle whorl is of the smaller variety, generally used in the north.
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