From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
A drop spindle is a simple tool that is used to create yarn or thread out of plant or anumal fiber. In its simplest form, a drop spindle is a stick with a whorl on it and an optional hook at one end. Spindles or parts of them have been found in very, very old archaelogical sites; they may represent one of the earliest pieces of technology available to humankind.
Drop spindles are typically available in high-whorl or low-whorl types. In a high-whorl drop spindle, the whorl sits very close to the top of the shaft, which is anywhere from six to eighteen inches long. A hook is placed on the top of the shaft to secure the developing yarn, and the newly-spun yarn is wound around the shaft underneath the whorl. In a low-whorl spindle, the whorl sits near the bottom of the shaft. The newly spun yarn is wound around the shaft just above the whorl, and then passed over the whorl, hitched around the tip of the shaft, brought back up to the top of the shaft, and hitched there again to stabilize it for further spinning.
Other forms of spindles include supported spindles, such as the large Navajo spindle and the tiny cotton-spinning tahkli.
