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1543 Will 27 Apr. in London Consistory Wills 1492–1547 (1967) 120 I owe to Michael the frewterer..for a prekele off ware 18d.

1604 N. F. Fruiterers Secrets 17 When your baskets or prickels be ful.

c1634 in H. Hall & D. J. Nicholas Sel. Tracts & Table Bks. Relating to Eng. Weights & Measures (1100–1742) (1929) (Camden) 3rd Ser. XLI. 53 Baskettes called prickles, conteyneing 4 Pecks and sometimes not soe much.

1674 Commune Concilium (London Court of Common Council) For each Prickle or Basket, holding not above one Bushel, one halfpenny per Day.

1693 J. Evelyn tr. J. de La Quintinie Compl. Gard'ner ii. vi. iv. 181 The prickle Baskets, and Hand-barrows should at this time be plyed with the greatest vigour and diligence.

1825 J. T. Brockett Gloss. North Country Words Prickle, a basket or measure of wicker work among fruiterers. Formerly made of briers. Hence, perhaps, the name.

1851 H. Mayhew London Labour I. 27/2 The prickle is a brown willow basket, in which walnuts are imported..from the Continent; they are about thirty inches deep, and in bulk rather larger than a gallon measure; they are used only by the vendors of walnuts.

1883 J. A. Symonds Shakspere's Predecessors (1900) ix. 278 Nymphs, carrying prickles, or open wicker baskets.

1887 W. D. Parish & W. F. Shaw Dict. Kentish Dial. Prickle,..a basket containing about ten gallons, used at Whitstable for measuring oysters. Two prickles equal one London bushel. One prickle equals two wash (for whelks). But the prickle is not exact enough to be used for very accurate measuring.

1912 T. Okey Introd. Art of Basket-making viii. 84 Cages, prickles (generally used for the transport of empty glass bottles), cradles, shoulder baskets and numerous other articles of common use.

1973 W. Elmer Terminol. Fishing iv. 244 (caption) Hythe.., 7-stone prickle-basket.

1992 G. Pike et al. Oysters & Dredgermen Gloss. Prickle, a local measure for oysters; one half of the basic unit, the tub.