A spindle is a slender, turned rod of wood used as a structural or decorative element in furniture. Spindles are typically thinner and lighter than balusters and may be plain, ringed or shaped along their length. They appear in chair backs, galleries, cot sides, stair rails, plate racks, shelves and the stretchers of tables and stools.
Spindle-back chairs were a staple of English country furniture, particularly in the north-west of England, where rows of short turned spindles were set between the back rails of rush-seated ladder and spindle chairs during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Spindles also form the galleries of Victorian whatnots and the decorative screens of Aesthetic Movement and Arts and Crafts furniture, and Shaker and American country makers used them widely. Many were turned on a pole lathe by rural craftsmen, so slight irregularities between spindles are a sign of hand work rather than a fault. When buying, check that spindles are original and firmly seated, since loose or replaced turnings are common, and that replacements match the colour and profile of the originals. Missing spindles can be copied by a skilled turner.
