Warp-weighted loom

The weight loom called a standing loom in which the warp threads are hanging vertically and loaded at its end with loom weights to obtain the necessary tension for weaving. Because the most of clay loom weights have received in the ground, he is the oldest archaeologically proven shape of the loom.

Construction

A weight loom consists of a rectangular frame, at the upper end side in each case one bracket is mounted for rotatable goods usually tree. At this the warp threads are attached after the archipelago. The sheds are made with the help of heald rods. The weft thread is inserted manually and struck with a Webschwert up.

History

Prehistoric textile evidence is there since the Upper Paleolithic about 30,000 years ago. Since the Neolithic clay spindle whorls and loom weights time to leave archaeological evidence. During spindle whorls in Central Europe already ( 6th millennium BC ) are found in settlements of the Linear Pottery, the oldest loom weights from the Late Neolithic date ( 3000 BC ). Therefore, the use of smaller, more portable loom is assumed for the cultures of the Early Neolithic period.

Until the horizontal loom in the 10th century began to spread in Central Europe, all fabrics woven on the loom weight. In remote areas (such as the Faroe Islands or Iceland ) was the weight loom but until the 20th century in use. Today Gewichtswebstühle be used in the Archäotechnik to nachzuweben textile finds, or they are used in museum education to make the prehistoric weaving technique comprehensible.