The weave precondition was Spinning Textiles; So now, I am going to present the evidence we have for this thesis! Luckily, Stone Age clues can prove this. Prehistoric people first invented the spindle and then the weaving loom. So they spun and twisted textile fiber into thread, before they learned to weave, and most other textile techniques. This is because, starting with the rope, a strong spun thread is also needed for sewing, knitting, crocheting, embroidery.
Evidence is, for example, by the engraved depiction of the last apron with long fringes made of thicker twisted threads on a prehistoric statuette. I gave an example in the earlier Post about Venus from Lespugue. Then, there are also the finds of remnants of material objects, as evidence. This is related to the remains of a 30 cm long piece of rope, from the Lascaux cave in the same region of France, which also confirms the material find of yarn.
The invention of the spinning process, in the beginnings of cultural development, also meant the beginning of the development of textiles. Over time, spinning gained more and more diverse purposes. Now, it is certainly clear, textile processing was one of the shifts that have significantly increased the quality of human life.
Early indications about Spun textiles presence in the so-called Children’s Cave, the site of Balzi Rossi in Italian Liguria, about 25,000 years ago
It could be that the beginning of shaping the textile raw material was rubbing the fibers between the palms, on the cheek, or on the thigh …And the first data on the spinning is from the late Palaeolithic of the Gravettian and Magdalen cultures in the areas of the present territories of France and Italy.
The people of that time, hunters and gatherers, knew the thread and the rope, to make a slingshot, then a bow and arrow, as well as a bone needle. They strung drilled stones, shells, animal teeth on strings, and tied necklaces and bracelets.
The positions and contents of the finds in numerous graves are similar to the usual schedule. They prove the presence of bracelets, necklaces, hats, and even decorated clothes, during the Gravettian period. One of the tombs in the so-called Children’s Cave is characteristic of the case of double burial. It was found in Balzi Rossi in Italian Liguria, dating back about 25,000 years. Four regular rows of drilled shells, originally probably sewn to the cap, have been preserved on the boy’s skull. The old woman, buried next to him, had a bracelet in the form of a double string of the same shells.
Weave precondition was Spinning Textiles, according to the find of the cast of Kord, in the Lascaux cave, Dordogne, southwest of France, considered to be among the oldest textile finds in Europe
In 1953, an archaeologist, Abbé Glory, was investigating the floor in the Lascaux cave near Dordogne in the Southwest of France. Suddenly, a piece of clay broke open in his hand to see the cast of a rather long piece of Paleolithic cord. He experienced that moment, which is a huge step in learning about the beginnings of textile crafts.
While working in our profession, we experience special moments of respect and joyful gratitude to someone of the Greats. I will probably once, write about my exaltations too.
But now, it’s the case of E. Wayland Barber, the author of Prehistoric Textiles, 1991. Seeing this famous find in daylight, she relived the event from the Cave. It is a universal fascination in fact that you are looking at a relief print of a rope twisted by someone’s hands from 15,000 years ago.
Examples of illustrations representing the discovery made by Abbot Glory in 1953:
1) Fragment No. 1: Length 5 cm. Carries evidence of the rope with a visible edge. Cast width, 6 to 8 mm.
2) The Second image is an example of read interpretation of the fossil record of the same fragment No.1: By placing a cellophane layer on the photo and following the main contours, the drawing of the panel.
3. Fragment No. 5. Length: 5 cm. containing the rope, which carried layers from the old ground. This analysis proved a piece of rope about 30 cm long, 7 to 8 mm wide, shaped with three strands twisted to the right.
4. Finally scientists could reconstitute the look of the rope. It is a drawing of the imprint of fragment 3 and a general reconstruction of the rope. Then, according to the original, restored possible view of the rope shape. The cord had been neatly twisted in the S direction, from three Z-plied strands of vegetable fiber. Thickness is 6 to 8 mm.
As we agree, the Weave precondition was Spinning Textiles; but many other questions about its development, as well the history of Culture in general, are still waiting.
I believe that some people sometimes think about the circumstances of the beginnings of twisting fibers into thread, especially since modern textile production of textiles replaces and reduces the psychophysical component of executive processes.
However, precise assumptions about the conditions and techniques of the origins of Textiles are not possible yet. Knowledge of spinning and weaving, as well as many other questions, can’t give complete information of such a distant past.
Questions as to when those inventions happened, or which materials had been used. Now, we can suppose how those strings were made and in what kind of process. Science facts now can only show, that people at that time, already knew various uses of yarn. And, for sure, that there were enough fine threads among them. However, to discover the origin of textile activity, it is necessary to find out when people learned to spin thin, brittle, and short, textile fibers into very strong, long, and flexible threads.
If, as it is usually said, “a suit makes a man”, the fabric or textile is the basic material used. Accordingly, in it spun textile thread is an essential element. So, we need to try our best and discover much more. I’m sure you agree and value this attitude.
Until the next time, Sincerely, Branka on Textiles
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