This video is mentioned multiple times in this thread and it's got to be the most ridiculous take for what these things are. These were expensive and difficult

This video is mentioned multiple times in this thread and it's got to be the most ridiculous take for what these things are. These were expensive and difficult to cast. They are made of metal which is very expensive at the time. There's no reason knitting would require a complex metal cast object of this kind when a wooden jig would be far easier and cheaper to produce.