Bageshwari charkha

Treadle-operated charkha or spinning wheel used in the Indian subcontinent to spin carded wool, cotton, silk, nettle or hemp into yarn for textiles. The fibre is fed by hand onto a table-mounted central rod connected to a foot pedal. The spinning rod twists the fibres into yarn, which winds onto a bobbin; the spinner maintains appropriate tension to ensure uniform thickness of yarn. A motorised version of the Bageshwari charkha has also been developed, which reduces physical labour and winds the yarn more evenly onto the bobbin.