Woolworks Curriculum Guide Grades 3-8 Lesson 9: Rigid Heddle

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"A loom has two basic purposes. One is to keep the warp threads under tension by fastening them to the front and back (or top and bottom) of the loom. The other is to provide a way for the weft to be woven over and under the warp threads. When people discovered techniques for lifting multiple warp threads, creating a shed through which the weft can pass, they greatly increased the speed of weaving. People all over the world have developed different approaches to this simple concept; there are hundreds of examples of looms all over the world that date back thousands of years."