distaff

DISTAFF, n.

1. The staff of a spinning-wheel, to which a bunch of flax or tow is tied, and from which the thread is drawn.

She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. Proverbs 31.

2. Figuratively, a woman, or the female sex.

His crown usurped, a distaff on the throne.