Spindle Whorl
Unknown Artist
10th–early 16th century
Medium
Ceramic
Dimensions
Diameter 1-1/16 in.
Classification
Ceramics-Implements
Culture
Mexican
Department
Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Museum Purchase, 1900
Accession Number
00.5.885
Art Historical Context
Nestled in the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection of Arts of Africa,, and the Americas, petite **Spindle Whorl**a ceramic disc just 1-1/16 inches in—hails from ancient Mexico, spanning the 10th to early 16th century.ed by an unknown artist, it exemplifies pre-Columbian ingenuity as a humble yet essential tool for spinning fibers into thread. Weighted at the end of a spindle, it provided the momentum needed to twist cotton, agave, or other plant fibers, transforming raw materials into yarn for weaving cloth. In Mexican indigenous cultures of the Postclassic period, such as those preceding t...