Oriental rugs, antique and modern . e spinning-wheelsof different design and about the height of a man. The nativesof districts more remote from civilisation still cling to the primevalspindle, which sometimes consists of no more than a rounded stickhalf an inch in diameter and a foot in length with a ball of clay atone end. Many of the nomadic tribes of Asia Minor and Mesopo-tamia use in place of it a small stone of convenient shape, to whichis tied a strip of linen a few inches in length. A few fibres of woolare attached to the end of the linen by twisting them about it, anda few more fibres
Oriental rugs, antique and modern . e spinning-wheelsof different design and about the height of a man. The nativesof districts more remote from civilisation still cling to the primevalspindle, which sometimes consists of no more than a rounded stickhalf an inch in diameter and a foot in length with a ball of clay atone end. Many of the nomadic tribes of Asia Minor and Mesopo-tamia use in place of it a small stone of convenient shape, to whichis tied a strip of linen a few inches in length. A few fibres of woolare attached to the end of the linen by twisting them about it, anda few more fibres are similarly attached to these when the stoneis suspended and twirled. As the fibres become closely twistedtogether more fibres are added until on account of the length of thethread thus formed the stone reaches the ground. The thread isthen wound about the stone and secured by a couple of loops soas to leave a piece only a few inches in length, to which more woolis attached in continuing the spinning. When a large ball of thread. Wf <i«^ Plate 4. Shiraz Rug THE MATERIALS 35 has been spun, it is removed from the stone and the process begunagain. One advantage of these simple devices is that they can easilybe carried anywhere. Even to-day a not unusual sight is a halfbarbaric shepherd following his flock, while he spins with simpledistaff and spindle or stone, as did his ancestors thousands of yearsago. On the end of the distaff, that rests beneath his left arm,is the ball of wool from which he selects and twists the fibres, whilehe deftly turns the short spindle or twirls the stone with thumband forefinger of the right hand. The threads spun by professionalspinners on spinning-wheels are of small diameter and are the mostregular in size and texture, those spun with the small spindle are oflarger diameter and less regular, and those spun by twirling a stoneare made of the coarsest diameter in order to insure sufficient stout-ness, since they are the most irregular in size
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, bookpublishernewyo, bookyear1922
