Where Was the Thimble Invented, What Was it Used For, and How Did it Get its Name?

A thimble is more than a token in a Monopoly game.

The thimble was originally called a thumb-bell, which is how it got its name.

Before the seventeenth century, when it was invented in Holland, pushing a sewing needle through skins or fabric often required the use of a small block of wood or bone.

Thimbles have a romantic history, and during the Victorian era thimbles were often love tokens.

They were even used to measure drinks, which gave us the expression, “Just a thimble-full.”

Someone who collects thimbles is a digitabulist.