{"id":921,"date":"2020-11-30T15:54:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-30T21:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/?p=921"},"modified":"2026-08-31T18:00:05","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T00:00:05","slug":"the-distaff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/2020\/11\/the-distaff\/","title":{"rendered":"The Distaff"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sometimes it feels to me, as a relatively new weaver, that I\u2019m on a wild joyride of unplanned and unfocused learning. I wind and weave from one fascinating technique to the next, because there are just so many wonderful things to learn, to try, and to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there is one area where I remain laser focused: the tools and techniques that came from the areas of the world that my ancestors came from: my mother\u2019s region of Karelia, in the southeast of what used to belong to Finland before World War II, and Lucknow and the parts of India north of it, where my father\u2019s family is from. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not just the techniques I\u2019m interested in. With a background in anthropology and archaeology, I\u2019m fascinated with the antique equipment used both as practical items and how they worked, and as cultural objects and how they fit into people’s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the more fascinating finds of late was an interesting looking distaff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Wikipedia:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

A\u00a0distaff<\/strong>\u00a0(\/\u02c8d\u026ast\u0251\u02d0f\/<\/a>,\u00a0\/\u02c8d\u026ast\u00e6f\/<\/a>, also called a\u00a0rock<\/strong>[1]<\/sup><\/a>) is a\u00a0tool<\/a>\u00a0used in\u00a0spinning<\/a>. It is designed to hold the unspun\u00a0fibers<\/a>, keeping them untangled and thus easing the spinning process. It is most commonly used to hold\u00a0flax<\/a>, and sometimes\u00a0wool<\/a>, but can be used for any type of fiber. Fiber is wrapped around the distaff, and tied in place with a piece of ribbon or string. The word comes from\u00a0dis\u00a0in Low German, meaning a bunch of flax, connected with staff.\u00a0

As an\u00a0adjective<\/a>\u00a0the term\u00a0distaff\u00a0is used to describe the female side of a family.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The distaff I’d stumbled across was a photograph in The National Museum of Finland\u2019s collection online. I\u2019d never seen anything like it. Instead of being a long simple stick or shaft, or a even a cage attached to a part of a spinning wheel, this one had a flatted oval board where the wool would have been attached. This was a rare find in the collection, since it included a length of rope and an iron spike that would have been wound around the wool to hold everything in place on the board. Even more interesting, the distaff was one single L-shaped piece, so the weaver could sit on it and hold it in place while they spun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Lukkarinen, J.\u00a0kehr\u00e4puu, kuontalopuikko ja kuontalonauha; kehr\u00e4puu, neula, pirtanauhaa<\/em><\/a>\u00a0East Karelian distaff with wool tape and needle, made sometime before 1941.\u00a0
Photo via The National Museum of Finland\u00a0CC BY 4.0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Finnish, these distaffs were known as\u00a0kehr\u00e4puu<\/em>\u00a0or, quite literally, a \u201cspinning wood\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0If I\u2019m understanding correctly – language translations can be a bit of a barrier for me sometimes – the part of the distaff one would sit on was called\u00a0jalaksen<\/em>\u00a0(aka \u201cthe seating board\u201d) and the flat part that ne would tie the flax or wool to was the\u00a0lapaan<\/em>\u00a0or \u201cshoulder\u201d.1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my subsequent searches for more information, I discovered that the L-shaped distaff wasn\u2019t confined to the area my ancestors came from. In fact, it had been in use all over Eastern Europe and parts of western Asia, from Estonia through the Slavic nations and deep into many regions of Russia (where it\u2019s known as\u00a0pryalka<\/em>).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can see a video here of how this kind of sit-on distaff is used:\u00a0Distaff and Spindle<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Russian distaffs displayed at the museum of folk handicrafts at\u00a0Ferapontov Monastery<\/a>
Image by Shakko on Wikimedia Commons<\/a>.\u00a0CC BY-SA 3.0<\/a><\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These sorts of distaffs were in use well up into the 1930s in many of these areas. Some were made as a single solid piece out of a tree trunk and tree roots. Others were made from two pieces that could be disassembled, with the decorated upright board then hung on the wall as decoration.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Nikkil\u00e4, E.\u00a0Pertinotsa (Suoj\u00e4rvi Moisenvaara); pirtin uuninurkkaus<\/em>.<\/em><\/a>Indoor scene from Seurasaari Open-Air Museum in Helsinki, with everyday objects around the corner oven. A distaff\u00a0<\/em>is on the left.
Photo via the Finnish Heritage Agency and Finland’s National Board of Antiquities\u00a0CC BY 4.0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Vahter, T<\/a>.\u00a0majatalon em\u00e4nt\u00e4 Maria Kuusim\u00e4ki kehr\u00e4\u00e4 v\u00e4rttin\u00e4ll\u00e4<\/em><\/a>
<\/strong>Maria Kuusim\u00e4ki spins with a spindle and distaff. Photographed in 1929 in the former Suistamo parish of Finnish Karelia.\u00a0Photo via Finland’s National Board of Antiquities\u00a0CC BY 4.0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Auvo, H.\u00a0Vera Mironoff n\u00e4ytt\u00e4\u00e4 kuinka “kuozalilla kegr\u00e4t\u00e4\u00e4n”<\/em>.<\/em><\/a>
Vera Mironoff shows how the seated distaff is used. Photographed in 1935.\u00a0
Photo via Finland’s National Board of Antiquities\u00a0CC BY 4.0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At first I thought the\u00a0kehr\u00e4puu<\/em>\u00a0of Finnish Karelia were simpler and plainer than Russian pieces, given the\u00a0predominantly oval shapes and plain wood I could see in the museum objects<\/a>, but now it seems that most of them were simply worn away. They were indeed painted at one time, usually in vibrant reds and greens and with designs that sometimes included flowers, leaves and birds. The sometimes ornately carved, beautifully painted but practical, objects were made by young men to give to their brides and thus also known as\u00a0puukihloiksi<\/em>, or \u201cwooden engagements\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As soon as I spied that first example in the online museum catalog I wanted one. But try as I might, I couldn\u2019t find any modern equivalent. There don\u2019t appear to be any artisans making anything like it today as far as I can tell. Eventually my husband promised to someday make one for me based on the archival photos. (That\u2019ll be another essay or a blog post.)\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the meantime, I kept an eye out for any antiques that might come available. I haven\u2019t seen one of the Finnish-Karelian style ones yet, but I did manage to find a Russian-style one on eBay recently, out of an estate sale in Ohio. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

My \u201cnew\u201d distaff as seen from the side where the spinner would sit.\u00a0
Photo copyright Fazia Rizvi<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his 2012 blog post A Distaff from the Russian Arctic<\/em><\/a>, Raymond J. writes about his accidental find of one similar to mine (but in much better painted condition.) You can clearly see the standard motif typical of the craftsmen of Borok, Archhangelsk oblast near the artic circle in northeastern Russia: \u201cwindow panes\u201d at the top, followed by area with a bird, and then one with horses, all on the same carved shape for the \u201cblade\u201d of the distaff. The inside of the blade has a blank area where possibly a mirror would be attached. If that were the case, it would explain the unusual markings I found on mine, in the same spot, that looked like something had been attached there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The back of the upright blade. You can see the \u201cwindow panes\u201d the arched area where a bird would typically be and the lower section where horses would typically be painted in red.
Photo copyright Fazia Rizvi<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It looks like someone had nailed the end of this down, possibly to stabilize it while spinning from it. I imagine the other end could get significantly heavy when a tied with wool or flax, and if you\u2019re not careful and get up, the whole thing could come toppling down, possibly giving you a good whack.
Photo copyright Fazia Rizvi<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for its age? What I could find about these sorts of footed distaffs seem to indicate that they\u2019re relatively young, typically from the 19th<\/sup>\u00a0and very early 20th<\/sup>\u00a0century and not much older than that.\u00a02<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I look forward to spinning with mine and hope to someday lay my hands on the simpler style of kehr\u00e4puu<\/em> from Finnish Karelia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. According to the Craft Museum of Finland. Document retrieved on October 19, 2020.\u00a0https:\/\/www.craftmuseum.fi\/blogit\/suomen-kasityon-museon-blogi\/mika-kuosalin-tarkoitus<\/a> \u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/li>
  2. “Painted distaffs coming to Georgia Museum of Art”. https:\/\/news.uga.edu\/painted-distaffs-georgia-museum-art\/<\/a> \u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Sometimes it feels to me, as a relatively new weaver, that I\u2019m on a wild joyride of unplanned and unfocused learning. I wind and weave from one fascinating technique to the next, because there are just so many wonderful things to learn, to try, and to do. But there is one area where I remain … <\/p>\n

    Continue reading “The Distaff”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"[{\"content\":\"According to the Craft Museum of Finland. Document retrieved on October 19, 2020.\u00a0https:\/\/www.craftmuseum.fi\/blogit\/suomen-kasityon-museon-blogi\/mika-kuosalin-tarkoitus<\/a>\",\"id\":\"79e1ae95-5bfc-4cf5-b85c-4650de3c0966\"},{\"content\":\"\\\"Painted distaffs coming to Georgia Museum of Art\\\". https:\/\/news.uga.edu\/painted-distaffs-georgia-museum-art\/<\/a>\",\"id\":\"e70738b9-115d-4277-8694-b1296aab1306\"}]"},"categories":[82],"tags":[312,294,303],"class_list":["post-921","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spinning","tag-distaff","tag-finland","tag-spinning"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/921","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=921"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/921\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":935,"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/921\/revisions\/935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=921"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=921"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.faziarizvi.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=921"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}