The hand-spindle, which consists of a rod and a whorl, is considered as a simple instrument for spinning and twisting yarn, and an appropriate tool for weaving by Neolithic people and primitive tribes. It is inexpensive to make and relatively easy to operate at any place and at any time, therefore, its use has continued until the present day. There are abundant references to the hand-spindle, various types of which could be still be seen in China in the last century, and may still be employed in remote areas. It is also suitable for all workable textile fibers.

The quality of yarn produced can be of outstanding fineness and evenness, yielding better results than the hand-operated spinning-wheel or the treadle-operated wheel. In China, hand-spun ramie yarn could be made three times finer than the best machine-spun quality produced today. These excellent results are due mainly to the raw material, to the speed of spinning, the way the yarn is fed, and the superior degree of control obtainable with it. Its simplicity and the good result it gives, have guaranteed the survival of the hand-spindle in many regions of the world, even at the present time.

The hand-spindle is the oldest textile-technological implement with a continuous history of use over the last 7,000 years or so. In Neolithic sites of Ho-mu-tu (河姆渡), some pottery whorls, and truncated cone types were excavated. To judge from the remains it must have been a nourishing place for many centuries at least as far as textile crafts were concerned. People practiced spinning and most probably weaving too. During Neolithic times the spindle-whorl was a technical device valued as a cultural object, a fact which is indicated by the variety of shapes and patterns.

In the archaeological sites from the Shang to Han dynasties, spindle-whorls are unearthed. In Shang and Chou times, the spindle-whorl became no more than a technical instrument, which meant that it is very seldom displayed its maker’s imagination or predilections. Shang and Chou whorls do not mirror a cultural attachment either; most of their shapes come from the Neolithic repertoire of whorls without adding any new features.

At the end of the Warring States period and in Han times, there was documentation which suggested that new materials were being used for the manufacture of spindle-whorls and spindle-shafts. A hand-spindle, entirely made of wood, has been found in a Han tomb in Kansu province (甘肅省).