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Author Topic: Weights with holes in them  (Read 1119 times)

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Offline manpace

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Weights with holes in them
« on: August 02, 2014, 12:14:56 pm »
Thought from the photo that maybe I was getting some potin tetradrachms with big holes through them, but on inspection these heavy little bits of metal were cast with the holes already in them (I see an air bubble inside the hole on the white one).

What would they be for?  One is pretty roughly made, but the other has some ornamentation after a fashion - five bumps on each side (not spaced very evenly), and uniform ridges all along.  Were they maybe fishing weights?  Some peculiar ring money?  Something else?  Or are they even ancient?  They were acquired from France with a bunch of Roman coins and one newer, milled one - but of course that doesn't necessarily mean anything.

Whitey is 15 grams, and the other one 20.  Whitey is 21 mm, the other one 22.

Offline mauseus

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Re: Weights with holes in them
« Reply #1 on: August 02, 2014, 12:32:43 pm »
Hi,

I would suspect that they are loom weights.

Regards,

Mauseus

Offline manpace

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Re: Weights with holes in them
« Reply #2 on: August 02, 2014, 01:36:56 pm »
Hi,

I would suspect that they are loom weights.

Regards,

Mauseus

BY GOLLY

http://www.weebling.com/artefact-pages/loom-weights.shtml

These are metal weights, not clay, and one is lead which explains the whitish "patina".  Apparently that takes a long time to develop on a lead object, so the white one is many centuries old.

I think they are actually spindle whorls, used to help the spindle maintain its spinning momentum.  It pleases me to see it ornamented, and imagine some medieval girl buying it at market and treasuring it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spindle_whorl

Thanks so much!

Offline mauseus

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Re: Weights with holes in them
« Reply #3 on: August 02, 2014, 01:48:33 pm »
Hi,

Yes, spindle whorls were what I was thinking of but coudn't remember the term.

Below is a Greek loom weight (not spindle whorl) that I have

Regards,

Mauseus

 

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