Spindle Whorl

Unknown

9th–10th century · Bone; tinted, incised, and inlaid with paint · Islamic Art

Spindle whorls aided in the making of thread by maintaining the momentum of the spindle. This semi-spherical pink-toned spindle whorl was excavated during the Metropolitan Museum’s excavation at Nishapur, in eastern Iran. It is decorated with a seven-pointed star, made of double lines joined at the points with a dot-in-circle and organized around the raised lip and center hole. A dot is also incised into each angle. 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.

Artist

Unknown

Date

9th–10th century

Medium

Bone; tinted, incised, and inlaid with paint

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1940