Which Tool for Which Fiber? Experimental Spinning Tests Using Bone, Glass and Amber Instruments

The TEXPA Project (Textile EXperimental Archaeology), carried out by the Department of Cultural Heritage of the University of Padua within the research on Roman textile in North-Eastern Italy, focused on the link between fibres, especially wool and flax, and textile tools through experimental tests. Combining 3D scanning and traditional craftsmanship, instruments for spinning (spindles, spindle whorls, distaffs) and weaving (loom weights) were reproduced. The paper focuses on the spinning tools and experimental tests. The context in which they were found (burials) and their features (precious and/or fragile materials) have led scholars to hypothesise that these tools only had a symbolic purpose. Our experiments however showed that these instruments could actually be functional: they were suitable for specific types of fibres (especially wool) and the bone spindle with the connected spindle whorl could be used to make a very thin yarn. Furthermore, by analysing the yarns produced using different sets of tools, the experimental tests have highlighted the determining role of fiber and spinner’s skill in the characteristics of the resulting yarns. Experimental archaeology applied to textile production has once again proved to be a useful method to understand the function and effectiveness of textile tools and to verify the correspondence between fibres, textiles and instruments.