Spindle Whorl

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 453

Spindle whorls aided in the making of thread by maintaining the momentum of the spindle. This convex spindle whorl made from rose-pink tinted bone was excavated at Nishapur. One side of the main body is decorated with an incised rosette of six dot-in-circles and a vertical line of dots, while the opposite is incised with an anthropomorphic figure. Hundreds of spindle whorls were excavated at Nishapur, providing further evidence that the city possessed a thriving textile industry. Their incised designs exhibit a wide variety of motifs ranging from geometric forms to zoomorphic figures.

Spindle Whorl, Bone; tinted, incised, and inlaid with paint

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