Spinning with a Medieval Tool

On a recent trip to France, I picked up a soapstone whorl in a fossil shop. I have purchased fossils  from this dealer many times in the past and have found him knowledgeable and trustworthy. My husband spotted some whorls in a display case and low and behold, they were labeled accurately, not as beads. 

This one meets all the requirements for what it is supposed to be; soapstone, decorated with a carved band parallel to the edge, plano-convex, hole is beveled, the rim has a small groove so that it can be used as a top or bottom whorl. It measures18mm high, 30 mm in diameter, and with an 8mm diameter  hole. It fits nicely on several of my spindle sticks. Originally it would have been secured with some linen thread and beeswax, I'm using a small, clear hair elastic. It could be pushed on the stick hard enough to keep it from slipping, but that would probably scratch the spindle stick. 

I have been spinning Shetland on it. It is very well balanced and given its small size and relatively heavy weight (26 gms), it spins fast and for a long time. It is such a pleasure to use something that was used by another woman almost a thousand years ago and for the same purpose.