Floor Swift

Object/Artifact

-

Windham Textile and History Museum

Floor Swift, Squirrel-Cage Type: The image showcases a vintage yarn reel, commonly known as a swift, placed against a backdrop of wooden panels with visible grain and slight imperfections, creating a rustic appearance; the apparatus, made of turned wood and ivory components, features a central spindle for winding yarn, supported by delicate, curved legs on a flat base, displaying craftsmanship reminiscent of a bygone era; beneath the device, a numbered sign "58-106" is prominently displayed, adding an element of cataloging or archival context, while the surrounding environment provides a neutral setting that emphasizes the intricate details of the object itself, highlighting its historical and functional significance.
Floor Swift, Squirrel-Cage Type

The image showcases a vintage yarn reel, commonly known as a swift, placed against a backdrop of wooden panels with visible grain and slight imperfections, creating a rustic appearance; the apparatus, made of turned wood and ivory components, features a central spindle for winding yarn, supported by delicate, curved legs on a flat base, displaying craftsmanship reminiscent of a bygone era; beneath the device, a numbered sign "58-106" is prominently displayed, adding an element of cataloging or archival context, while the surrounding environment provides a neutral setting that emphasizes the intricate details of the object itself, highlighting its historical and functional significance.

Name/Title

Floor Swift

Entry/Object ID

2017.01.16

Description

Floor swift, squirrel cage type. Probably 18th-century European. A parlor sift, delicate and beautifully made. The cup for holding a ball of yarn is on the lower cage bracket. One wooden and one ivory ball are missing, also an ornament is missing from the top of the post. Delicate and graceful lathe work showing both face turning and side turning. The upper cage is adjustable by means of an ivory set screw. There is a small ivory ball on the end of the lower bracket arm and a wooden cup for holding a ball of yarn during interruptions in the process of winding. Wood not identified. A turned circular base 6 1/2" x 1 1/2" is supported on threesplayed turned legs 4" long and supports a vertical upright 32 1/4" tall; the lower 7 1/2" are turned, the rest square. There are two turned horizontal arms 6 1/2" long, the lower one fixed, the upper one movable. Each arm supports a squirrel-cage reel 4" wide with wooden spokes and a wire axle, playing between delicately turned posts 4" high. The lower arm has an ivory ball at its end and a small wooden cup on its upper surface. The upper arm has a turned ivory key for adjustment of height.

Use

Swifts were used for winding thread and yarn.

Context

Preindustrial textile technology.

Collection

American Textile History Museum Collection

Made/Created

Artist

Unknown

Time Period

18th Century

Place

Continent

Europe

Lexicon

Nomenclature 4.0

Nomenclature Secondary Object Term

Swift

Nomenclature Primary Object Term

Winder, Yarn

Nomenclature Sub-Class

Textile Manufacturing Equipment

Nomenclature Class

Textileworking T&E

Nomenclature Category

Category 04: Tools & Equipment for Materials

Other Names and Numbers

Other Numbers

Number Type

ATHM

Other Number

1959.1.200

Number Type

ATHM

Other Number

1958-106

Dimensions

Height

35-1/2 in

Width

10 in

Length

10 in

Material

Hardwoods, Ivory, Varnish

Location

Location

Exhibit Room

Mill Manager's Parlor Exhibit

* Untyped Location

Main Museum Building

Category

Exhibit

Date

April 5, 2025

Condition

Overall Condition

Fair

Condition Detail

Badly worm-eaten bench and legs. Chipped cage end. Legs and feet worm eaten. Something missing from top of upright, perhaps an ivory ball. The wings of the ivory key are broken off. Loose joints. One wooden and one ivory finial are missing.

Date Examined

Apr 4, 2025

Provenance

Provenance Detail

Donated to ATHM in 1959 as part of the S. D. Stevens Collection, although ATHM record cards also show dates 1963 and 1970.

Created By

historian@millmuseum.org

Create Date

April 5, 2025

Updated By

historian@millmuseum.org

Update Date

April 5, 2025