Skip to main content

Spinning

https://www.flickr.com/photos/photographic-heritage/15147232057


     Japanese spinning has a couple of key differences from the spinning historically done in the west. The spinning wheel used in Japan is the same as that used in India and China and it is believed to have spread to Japan around 1,200 C.E. This is most evident with cotton, in which the entire process mirrors that used in India almost exactly. However, cotton wasn’t introduced to Japan was producing fabrics long before the introduction of the spinning wheel, so some process must have existed before its introduction. Unfortunately I have had very little luck finding any information whatsoever on the spinning processes of ancient Japan. The only spinning wheel anyone associates with Japan is the spinning wheel that is largely believed to have originated somewhere in the middle East. No one seems to be very clear on exactly where and when the wheel was invented, some claim it began to be used in India from around 300 to 600 C.E., other sources claim that it didn’t spread from the middle east to India until around 1,000 or 1,200 C.E.

Tahkli supported spindle used in India for cotton spinning. Cotton requires a higher 
number of twists for inch and is therefore best spun using dense, compact spindles
with minimal points of friction.
     Although I have been able to find no information on any prior methods, I suspect that, based on the style of spinning wheel that did eventually spread in Japan and spindles used in the same area of the world, some variation on a supported spindle was probably used. The supported spindle is used by spinning a spindle whose base is resting in some bowl or dish with one hand while drafting out the fiber in the other.

Pictured on the right is a tahkli spindle used in India for cotton spinning. 

      The spinning wheel that has become known as the Japanese spinning wheel requires a very similar method. The wheel is turned with one hand, which in turn spins a whorl which twists the thread as it is drafted with the other hand. The significant difference between these spinning wheels and the spinning wheels used in the West, is that this method of spinning requires different actions to be preformed simultaneously with both hands. Another point of significance here is that there are no records of a Japanese spindle. A spindle of some sort probably existed prior to the use of the spinning wheel, but I can find no record of its existence. So, I suspect that, if a spindle was ever used in Japan, it essentially stopped being used as soon as the spinning wheel was introduced. By comparison, Europe has used spindles for all its history until the industrial revolution and in Peru spindles are used even in the current era with no significant use of spinning wheels even after Europe invaded. Spindles allow for portability and cost little to nothing. In cultures in which spindles are primarily used, spinning is generally done by a relatively high portion of the population. In Peru almost all children learn to spin and bring their spindles around with them so they can continue to produce yarn whenever and wherever. Spinning wheels generally can produce more thread faster, but they require a higher initial investment and are not portable. Therefore, in Japan, where the primary means of thread production was the spinning wheel, spinning was almost certainly delegated to a fewer individuals who spent more time spinning. This probably helped make the transition to industrialization of the textile process smoother as the process was likely already treated as more of a commercial enterprise than cottage production.



Pacey, Arnold (1991) [1990]. Technology in World Civilization: A Thousand-Year History (First MIT Press paperback ed.). Cambridge MA: The MIT Press. pp. 23–24.

 Smith, C. Wayne; Cothren, J. Tom (1999).  4. John Wiley & Sons. pp. viii. ISBN 978-0471180456. The first improvement in spinning technology was the spinning wheel, which was invented in India between 500 and 1000 A.D.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jacquard Loom

Jacquard loom      The loom used in the modern production of Nishijin textiles is the Jacquard loom that was invented in 1801 in France and brought to Japan in 1872 when three students were sent to Europe by the Kyoto Prefectural Government to learn their techniques. This allowed Japan to mass produce Nishijin Ori and it has become the loom that is associated with Nishijin.      The Jacquard loom is designed specifically for brocades. To use the loom patterns are plotted out and then transferred onto cards in the form of a system of holes that determine which warp threads are to be pulled through and thus the pattern is decided with less work for the weaver.   This loom allows for complicated designs to be input into the looms to mass produce textiles without losing quality in the end product. The loom is massive, but not far in size from standard European looms and, though the mechanism itself is complicated in comparison to previous looms, ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Himeji Castle

      I visited Himeji Castle during Golden week. The castle was built in 1346 by Akamatu Sadanori and is designed to have the appearance of a white heron in flight. The Castle is built primarily of wood and the exterior has been plastered using a mixture of slaked lime, shell ash, hemp fiber and seaweed leaving the entire structure white except for the roofs. The roofs themselves are made of black convex and concave tiles set in place using more white plaster resulting in a white and black latticed look across all the roofs of the castle.       Himeji Castle has survived centuries of changes of occupants and wars. It miraculously survived the bombing of Himeji city twice and became something of a symbol of hope and strength. The west Baily that surrounds the perimeter of the castle famously housed Princess Sen who is known for having one of the few marriages at that time that is believed to have been for love. The castle is scheduled for thoro...
Post a Comment
Read more

Kimono

     Kimonos are the national dress of Japan. They are the more ceremoninal robes once worn on the daily now worn primarily for official occasions by most individuals or on the daily by some elder members of the population. In my experience in Japan I have most often saw kimonos worn by elderly ladies downtown especially when going to or from Kyoto. I saw some more full black kimonos worn at a funeral, and at the coming of age ceremony where all the women coming of age and some of the men wore beautiful bright and highly decorated kimono complete with extravagant hair styles and makeup.      The construction of the kimono is fundamentally simple. Because the kimono is constructed primarily of large rectangular cuts of fabric, unlike most western garments, the highlight of a kimono has less to do with complicated construction and extensive tailoring and more to do with the fabric. Therefore, kimonos vary very little in style and far more in the choice ...
Post a Comment
Read more