A device for twisting fibres together into one continuous strand or thread. The Salish spindle consist of two parts: a slender shaft of oceanspray (Holodiscus discolor) wood about a meter long, and a disc-shaped weight or whorl of wood, bone, or stone with a central hole through which the shaft is inserted. Most of the weavers at Musqueam now use a spinning wheel to spin. They control the spinning through their hands and a foot pedal.

a small flywheel used in spinning thread

a weight with a hole in the middle, which were used to hold the thread fixed

(2) -- a weight attached to the end of a spindle to facilitate manipulation of the thread in spinning (Biers, 337)

Spindle whorls were an essential tool for the processing of sheep's wool. Spindles were used to spin the wool. A whorl was attached to the bottom of a spindle to keep it turning as long as possible.