File:Lead spindle whorl (FindID 95821).jpg

English: A lead plano-convex spindle whorl. The spindle whorl is 32 mm in diameter with a central perforation that is 11.6 mm in diameter. The whorl is decorated with two lines of circular dots in relief, one line around the central perforation, the other around the external edge. Further decoration consists of a five pointed star, also in relief, formed around the perforation. All of this decoration is visible on both sides of the artefact. It has been noted that the weight of a spindle whorl is demonstrative of the thickness of yarn produced, with lighter spindle whorls (3 - 5 grams) being used for spinning cotton and the heavier ones (30 - 35 grams) for spinning wool (Margeson 1993, page 184). This example weighs 56 grams, so it seems likely that it would have been used to spin a heavy material such as wool. The dating of unstratified Spindle whorls is very difficult. However, Egan (1998, page 256) has argued that there was an apparent lack of interest in developing decorative versions of spindle whorls during the Medieval period, compared to the decorative examples known from the Roman and Saxon periods. Although decorated examples are known from the Medieval period, it seems more likely that such a decorative example is earlier and this artefact probably therefore dates to the Roman or Anglo-Saxon period.