The Trindle:
aka - the Medieval Itty Bitty Booklight

Assembly

Assembly: Dipping and Winding

How do you put wax on twine?

Initially we thought this would be the easiest part of the project. But little did we know what we would learn.

     Fire can burn you.
     Hot beeswax can burn you.
     A hot pan can burn you.
     Twine burns, and can then burn you.
     Beeswax burned too hot for too long can catch fire, and burn you.
     Long sleeves, and hair can also burn...

     And as an aside cold beeswax is a bear to get off your stove.

So bearing all this in mind its a good idea to take some time to prepare your area before you strike that match.

Winding Possibilities, or Is that a Nøstepinde in your Pocket?

Looking at the paintings, we initially concentrated upon close examinations of Memling's and van der Weyden's portraits, because those showed more of the booklight. In Memling's, a hollow, open core is clearly present; a very small one can be seen in the shadow of Mary's thumb in van der Weyden's.

We first tried rolling the wick as it came out of the beeswax, thinking that it would be the most efficient method for containing the mess and creating a finished product. What we found in wrapping it around a 3/4" diameter stick, however, is that the hot wax was more prone to clump to other pieces of hot wax, then break off when manipulated once cool.

The first break through in addressing the method for winding came with the discovery of a yarn working tool called a nøstepinde. This is little more than a polished and tapered rod of wood. The pin is turned from wood, and then tapered gradually from the handle to the end, a distance of approximately 8 to 10 inches.

This tool is commonly held to be a folk tool of the 18^th century, with unauthenticated roots into the Middle Ages. Efforts to find an example of this tool are on going. But there is sufficient reason to believe that this is indeed the method that was used in the making of these coils.

First there is mention of such a tool in the OED.

Yarnwindle: An appliance for winding a skein of yarn into a ball: = GARNWINDLE.

c1325 Gloss. W. de Bibbesw. in Wright Voc. 157 A yarwyndel.

c1340 Nominale (Skeat) 547 Serence lussel et voydere, hechele clewen arewyndul.

c1440 Promp. Parv. 536/2 arne wyndel, or ga(r)wyndel (S. or arwyndyl), girgillus.

c1475 Pict. Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 794/33 Hic virgillus, a yerwyndylleblad.

1530 PALSGR. 291/1 Yarne wyndell, tornette.

1611 COTGR., Desvidoir, a paire of blades, or yarnwindles.

[f. GARN, YARN + -windel formed as instrumental noun to OE. windan to WIND; cf. OE. windel basket, G. windel swaddling-band, Sw. vindel whirl, spiral, ON. vindill wisp, vindla to wind. So Ger. garnwindel (15th c.) beside -winde.]

A note about the changing face of textile work should be added here. The use of the term yarnwindle in 1611 most likely is what we would call today a niddy-noddy. This is a different tool, which produces a skein of wool, not a compact ball or cylander.

Secondly in the proof of the use of a yarnwindle, or nøstepinde, is the product that is formed. The resulting ball or cylander is distinctive in its shape and characteristic central hole.

The coil we produced by the nøstepinde shares the characteristic flat bottom and top, as well as the central hole as is seen in the Memling "Annunciation." Also a coil produced in this manner has several benefits, the most obvious being that it can be stored standing upright and will not roll easily off a surface.

Another distinctive factor supporting the use of a nøstepinde is the pattern in the winds of the coils themselves. The cross action of the coils, first up then down, is produced as the nøstepinde is rotated and more layers are added.

More to Come

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