A hand spindle is defined as a device that can be twisted or rotated by hand to twist fibres together into yarn. There two types of hand spindles, a drop spindle, in which the thread is twisted as the spindle rotates while it falls to the ground. A suspended spindle, where the spindle is spun on a set surface like a top and the thread is made by pulling the fibre away from the spindle. In hand spinning, you can design the exact kind of yarn you desire with variations in texture. colour or thickness that you wish, your are limited only by your level of skill and imagination. Spinning fibres into thread was initially accomplished without the use of any tools at all; however, this method was more time-consuming. The fibres were held in one hand, and the other hand was used to pinch off a portion of the fibre. The fibres were then twisted by hand between the fingers while simultaneously being pulled out to create longer lengths of thread. Thread made in this manner is referred to as twisted yarn. Archaeologists found a carved woolly mammoth tusk depicting a figure wearing a loincloth made of twisted threads dated back to 25,000 BC, whether the threads were twisted or spun is difficult to determine. The oldest actual tool used for spinning thread were common rocks. Archaeologists theorize that this tool was commonly used by primitive peoples, but they do not have good supporting archaeological evidence for this. As the first spinners were nomadic tribes from pre-agrarian societies, and would use stones found at each new site for their spinning. A leader thread would be spun by twisting the fibres between the fingers , then the resulting thread would be tied around the rock. The rock could then be rotated to spin the fibres as they were played out between the fingers. Spinning with rocks is still done in remote parts of Asia among the nomadic tribes. A hooked stick is another ancient tool used for spinning. Whereas the rock would be used more like a drop spindle, a stick cut from the branches of a tree would be used to spin the fibres by rolling the stick horizontally along the length of your thigh to put twist into the fibres. The first sticks may have been straight, and were a natural outgrowth of rolling the fibre along the length of their leg to twist the fibres. As with the rock, the time and place of the origin of this spinning tool is unknown. Eventually, man hit upon a way to combine both the rock and the stick to create a tool that could provide greater twisting momentum for improved ease in spinning the yarn. A whorl, often made of clay, bone or a soft rock, was attached to the spindle. The spindle could then be twisted by hand with the weighted end of the shaft suspended on the ground, or rolled along the thigh. It could also be used as a drop spindle, where the whorl could be placed at the top or bottom of the spindle. The bead-whorl spindle is a variation of this style, and is considered to be the most widely-used style of spindle throughout history. It is specifically designed to spin fine yarns which require a lot of twist, and was in widespread use throughout Asia, the Middle East and Africa where short-staple fibres such as cashmere, cotton and camel were used. These spindles often had slim shafts, a pointed end to reduce friction with the ground, and hooked or pointed tops so that it could be used for either suspended or drop spinning. The bead is usually an inch or less in diameter and made of a dense material like stone or metal so that it rotates quickly to provide a lot of twist. Some styles of bead-whorl spindles place the bead in the centre of the spindle, so that the yarn can be spun both above and below the spindle. The most common form of drop spindle used today is known a hooked high-whorl spindle. This spindle has the whorl located less than half the length of the spindle, with a hook at the top. This type of drop spindle has been used since the twentieth century BC in Egypt, where wall paintings depict spinners spinning and plying their yarns on hooked high-whorl spindles. Some spindles of this style have two whorls, one above the other, with a space to wind the yarn between the whorls. This type of spindle was in common use throughout the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Another variation of this style is the carved one-piece spindle, in which the spindle was made of lathe-turned wood with a wide top to act as a built-in whorl. These were most often used among European nobility of Italy, France and Spain in the 19th century, once spinning was taken up as a pastime instead of being a daily chore, and were often decorated with gilt and coloured enamel. Whereas high-whorl spindles were in common use in the East, drop spindles where the whorl was placed at the bottom of the spindle predominated Europe and Greco-Roman areas. These low-whorl spindles were most commonly used to spin longer-staple fibres such as linen, silk and wool, and are still in widespread use in India, Indonesia, Peru and the Philippines. Low-whorl drop spindles are second in popularity today to high-whorl spindles for most modern day spindle spinners.Among the nations of ancient times, recorded history leads us to believe, spinning was distinctively a woman's occupation. The tools used were primitive, but most early spinners were highly skilled craftsmen. Woolen and linen cloth were made for wool and flax. Camel hair and goat's hair were spun for sack cloth. Wheelspinning was unknow. The fibers were drawn from the distaff and twisted into thread by means of the spindle The story of spinning is interwoven with the history of man. Wherever traces of early man was found, there also has been evidence of spun thread or spinning implements. The first attempt of the spinning process consisted of twisting animal fibers with suitable plant materials. Many of the earliest methods and tools are still in use to this day, especially the various drop spindles and such types as the India and Navajo spindles. This consisted of a stick from nine to fifteen inches long. It had a notch at one end for catching the thread, and a stone or baked clay bowl called a whorl, to help make the spindle spin like a top. The Ancient Egyptians used such spindles to make thread for fine cloth. They spun cotton from combed rolls. Wool or flax fibers were wound around a stick called a distaff, which was used to hold the flax or wool. The spinning wheel used in Europe as far back as the 1200's, was the first device to give the spindle a spinning movement. The principle was the same as the hand spindle. A band or small belt connected to a large wheel passed over a groove in the spindle and turned it. A foot pedal turned the wheel. A distaff carried the material to be spun. The material was drawn off the distaff by hand. The Fineness of the thread depended on the speed with which the twisting thread was drawn. For very fine thread, two spinnings were necessary. A spinning wheel is a device for spinning thread or yarn from fibrous material such as wool or cotton. The spinning wheel was an advancement on the concept of the drop-spindle, invented somewhere in China or India between 500 and 1000 AD; like the drop-spindle, the spinning wheel works by spinning the material, twisting the fibers into a long, continuous strand. Rather than relying on finger-twisting or gravity, however, the spinning wheel is turned by hand or by a treadle (a foot pedal) (or other motivation, such as water or electric power) to turn a large wheel, which, by the use of a drive band, turns a smaller wheel. The motion of the wheel twists the thread, which is then wound on either a post called (after its predecessor) the spindle, or onto a bobbin. Numerous types of spinning wheels exist, including the great wheel also known as "walking wheel" or wool wheel for rapid long-draw spinning of woolen-spun yarns; the flax wheel, with its bobbin and flyer assembly, for spinning linen and worsted-spun yarns; and the charka, a small, portable, hand-cranked wheel for spinning cotton and other fine, short-staple fibers. the walking wheel. It is about the height of a person, and is the practical limit of the size wheel that can be used in a home. In order to spin the fiber into yarn, one turns the wheel by hand. Each revolution of the big wheel causes many revolutions of the smaller wheel, as can be seen in the picture. The rotation of the smaller wheel then causes the spindle (the object sticking out horizontaly, often made of metal) to turn. When the person spinning the fiber wants to add more twist to the yarn they are creating, they hold the fiber away from the wheel enough so that the yarn made does not wind itself up onto the spindle. Once a sufficient amount of yarn has been made, the spinner allows the yarn to be wound onto the spindle, and starts again. One advantage of a great wheel is that controlling the tension in the yarn is much easier to adjust. Instead of messing with knobs, all that is required is a step forward or backward. Some disadvantages are that one must always be standing (a fact which gave rise to the term walking wheel), and that it takes more time than a standard spinning wheel because one has to stop spinning in order to wind up the yarn already made. In 1733, John Kay invented the flying shuttle, an improvement to looms that enabled weavers to weave faster. The original shuttle contained a bobbin on to which the weft (weaving term for the crossways yarn) yarn was wound. It was normally pushed from one side of the warp (weaving term for the the series of yarns that extended lengthways in a loom) to the other side by hand. Large looms needed two weavers to throw the shuttle. The flying shuttle was thrown by a leaver that could be operated by one weaver. The "Spinning Jenny" The increased speed of weaving created a new problem because it now took three spinners to keep up with one weaver. This problem was resolved in 1764, when James Hargreaves invented a new machine that was capable of spinning eight threads of cotton yarn, instead of the spinning wheel's one. The new machine was called the spinning jenny. All this time the processes of spinning and weaving were still being carried out at home. This was possible because both the flying shuttle and the spinning jenny were small enough to be used in the cottage. John Kay was the twelfth child of a farmer and born in Lancashire on July 16, 1704. In 1753, his home was attacked by textile workers who were angry that his inventions might take work away from them. Kay fled England for France where he died in poverty around 1780. Kay's invention paved the way for mechancal power looms, however, the technology would have to wait another thirty years before a power loom was invented by Edmund Cartwright in 1787. Researched by John Bennett.