I brought this old yarn winder back with me from my parents' after Easter holidays. My dad guessed that it's from the late 1800:s, and my grandfather called it a "härvträ" (ostrobothnian, direct translation would be something like "skein wood").
It counts the amount of wound yarn by making a snapping sound when the wheel has turned one whole round. There is a small wooden pin (doesn't show in the picture) that sticks out from the wheel, and when it touches the piece of bone on the right and the snap is heard, you know that you've wound a certain amount of yarn.
The arms that hold the yarn are not the original ones and don't really work that well. I'm going to make new arms this summer when I get to spend some time at our summer house. Can't wait!
