Skewer of the type used on a spinning mule creel to support the bobbins containing the rovings, from Murrays' Mills, Ancoats.

This spinning mule creel skewer was found on the fourth floor of Old Mill at Murrays' Mills in Ancoats during the archaeological survey of the site. Larger than other skewers found, it reflects the increasing size of spinning mules during the nineteenth century. Murrays’ Mills is one of the oldest surviving steam-powered cotton spinning mill complexes. First established in Ancoats in 1797, it became, along with neighbouring McConnel and Kennedy mills, one of the largest industrial complexes of its time, reflecting Ancoats’ development into the first industrial suburb.