International Wind- and Watermill Museum
Encyclopedia
The International Wind-
and Watermill
Museum , at Gifhorn
in the German state of Lower Saxony
, is the only one of its kind in Europe. On the museum's open air site, which covers an area of around 16 hectares (39.5 acre), there are currently 16 mills from 12 different countries (as at 2009). The mills are either original or faithful reproductions and are set in landscapes typical of their origins. Right across the site are historic artefacts associated with mills and the milling industry. The museum site is easily accessed by road; nearby is the intersection between the B 4
and B 188
federal highways. The museum is station 65 on the Lower Saxon Mill Road
.
that was still working, on the Elm ridge at Abbenrode during an outing. Horst Wrobel made a replica of the mill at a scale of 1:25 and then collected all kinds of material about windmills and watermills. In 1974 he established a private museum in Suhlendorf
with the first models of mills that he had built. In order to create a larger scale model, he first made overtures in 1977 to the district of Gifhorn, who then actively supported the project. In the same year the two parties concluded a leasehold agreement for the land of the future museum site.
to prevent flooding to and to regulate the flow of the river Ise
. The first structures to be built were the exhibition hall and three mills (The Kellerholländer, the post mill (Bockwindmühle) and the Tyrolean watermill).
.
Examples of the mill models:
is the village square or Dorfplatz with a collection of three timber-framed houses, which are arranged in the form of a Rundling
village:
On the square is the "international mill tree". This is a pole, about 30 metres high, on which the state coats-of-arms of all the countries represented by the mills in the museum may be found, as well as wood carvings with milling motifs.
Sanssouci, a German smock mill
A smock mill
has stood on the Dorfplatz since 1984 which is based on the historic mill near the castle of Sanssouci
in Potsdam
. The 40 metre high original was built in 1788, burnt down in 1945 during the final clashes of the Second World War and was rebuilt in Potsdam in 1993. The mill near the royal residence became famous through a legend that its clattering disturbed Frederick the Great. When the king threatened it with compulsory purchase, the miller was referred to the Kammergericht, or Supreme Court, in Berlin. The German name for this type of mill, Galerieholländer ("Dutch gallery mill"), refers to the circular gallery on the fourth story of the mill. The mill thus has enormous dimensions. Inside the Sansoucci mill at Gifhorn, the story of the mill museum is presented.
Viktoria, a German post mill
The Viktoria post mill comes from the nearby village of Osloß
and may therefore be considered typical of the local area. In 1882 it was erected there by a miller who had bought the mill in Neuhaldensleben district. Its original year of construction is given on the mill as 1816. It closed in 1940 and fell into disrepair. The district of Gifhorn bought the dilapidated mill in 1977 and gave it into the charge of the museum owner, Horst Wrobel. It was restored with the help of donations and, in 1980, was rebuilt at the mill museum in working order.
The German term for this type of mill, Bockwindmühle, refers to a mill in which the entire millhouse, stands on, or, more precisely, hangs from, a trestle or Bock. The millhouse along with its equipment was turned into the wind before work was begun. According to the Prussian Civil Code of 1794, a Bockwindmühle was not counted as a building in its narrowest sense, but as a machine. That meant that the owner did not have to pay house interest tax (Hauszinssteuer) for his workplace.
Immanuel, a German tower mill
This tower mill
comes from Westdorf in the district of Dithmarschen
, where it was built in 1848 under the name Immanuel. It is one of the original three mills that was established at the museum. It is described in German as a Bergholländer ("Dutch hill mill") or Kellerholländer ("Dutch cellar mill"). These terms indicated that, in the former case that the mill was built on a small hill, and in the latter, that it had a cellar into which the horses and carts could be driven. During the course of its history the mill was modified many times and evolved into a highly technical mill including, inter alia an automatic wind rose
. The sails could be adjusted to the wind speed. In 1969 the last miller offered to donate the mill in a newspaper advert on the condition that it was rebuilt. The newspaper publisher, Axel Springer
, acquired the mill and had it restored. Later he donated it to the mill museum, where it was rebuilt in 1979.
near Lienz
in the Tyrol
is also one of the first three mills of the museum and was built here in 1979. It used to stand by a mountain stream in the Lesachtal
valley in East Tyrol and is driven on the museum site by a pond. The mill, made of solid larch logs, has two overshot water wheels, that drive two milling gears.
Rossmühle, a German horse mill
The Rossmühle is probably the largest horse mill
(Pferdemühle) in Germany and comes from Hüllhorst-Oberbauerschaft in the district of Minden-Lübbecke. The original was built in 1797 and this replica erected in 1982. It is an octagonal timber-framed building. In the interior, horses walked around in a circle turning a wooden cogwheel with a power of one horsepower
(PS) each. The cogwheel, with its 320 teeth and diameter of 32 metres, is the largest known of its type. It drove a stamping mill, used in the production of flax
, and a corn mill.
was constructed on an artificial island on the site. It is a white tower mill
with a pointed roof and twelve sails.
, an occasion intended to foster positive contacts with the former Communist state. The mill's prototype stands in Gifhorn
's partner town of Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi
in Ukraine
near Kiev
, where it acts as a restaurant today under the name of Vitrjak ("windmill"). The mill has a base made of solid pine and spruce logs built in log cabin style. The long, narrow tower only houses a driveshaft. Like many Ukrainian structures, the windows, doors and exposed brickwork are richly decorated.
Hungarian Danube ship mill
In 1989, after taking just one year to build, the Danube
ship mill
, Julischka, went into operation on the Ise
. It consists of two wooden boats between which a paddle wheel turns. In the larger hull is the mill gear and the miller's room. The smaller hull supports the axle of the paddle wheel which rotates in the river. The mill was built by:
With this type of mill the owner is both miller
and ship's captain
. He can search for the best water flow in the river. The ship mill has the disadvantage of being an obstacle to shipping so that, in the 19th century, regulations had to be introduced. In 1861 the construction of ship mills was banned on the River Rhine, consequently the last mill of this type disappeared in 1926. Such river mills have completely disappeared from today's rural scene, because they only have a life of about 50 years. They had been invented by as early as 536 during the siege of Rome
by the Ostrogoths. Their heyday was during the 16th and 17th centuries.
in central Portugal. It also represents the type of mill found on the Algarve coast. The mill, with its four triangular sails, is typical of Portugal
and the Mediterranean area.
, which is dedicated to the conservation of Russian architectural heritage.
in French Provence
. The poet, Alphonse Daudet
(1840–1897), immortalised it in the 19th century in his book, Letters From my Mill. In 1935 the "Society of the Friends of Alphonse Daudet" dedicated the mill as a museum and, in 1936, it appeared on a French postage stamp. This type of mill first appeared in the 12th century and is one of the oldest in France
.
appeared in 2003, the first Asian mill on the museum site. It is an overshot mill from a hill region in the province of Gangwon-do
in South Korea
. Hill farmers used this type of farm in the 19th century to grind corn. The Gifhorn mill was built in Korea using old traditional methods and Korean firs and birches and transported by ship to Germany, where three specialists from Korea erected it. It is a present from the Korean governor in whose district this type of mill was used.
Taiwanese water treadmill
From the island of Taiwan
comes this water treadmill
, which was used to scoop water up and raise it to a higher level. This is the only mill of this type that exists in that country. This replica of a historic water treadmill is a loan from the vocational schools in the district of Gifhorn that have a school partnership arrangement with Taiwan.
. This type of mill was the forerunner of the Pelton turbine. Its bucket water wheels were especially useful where there were small amounts of water and steep gradients. This type was used especially in mountain regions, like the Alps
, the Pyrenees
and the Carpathians. The mill was a present from the Serbian-Orthodox
bishop
Lavrentije of the diocese
of Šabac
-Valjevo
to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the mill museum.
windmill on Corbey Hill and dates to 1790. The original stands in Gifhorn's Scottish partner town of Dumfries
.
The Russian stave church
The 27 metre high stave church
on the museum site with its eight gilded domes is a replica of the wooden Russian Orthodox
church dedicated to Saint Nicholas
. The Muscovite patriarch
, Alexy II, formerly head of 100 million Russian Orthodox Christians, opened it in 1995. In the church there is an exhibition with liturgical artefacts (icon
s, oil lamps, candlesticks, vestments, embroidery
, fonts and bibles) from the Moscow patriarchate
. There is an additional charge for visiting the interior of this impressive, cathedral-like building, decorated with iconic paintings. The original was built in 1765 as a Transfiguration of Christ Church (Christi-Verklärungskirche) in the central Russian village of Kosljatjewo.
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
and Watermill
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
Museum , at Gifhorn
Gifhorn
Gifhorn is a town and capital of the district Gifhorn in the east of Lower Saxony, Germany. It has a population of about 42,000 and is mainly influenced by the small distance to the industrial and commercially important cities nearby, Brunswick and Wolfsburg...
in the German state of Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, is the only one of its kind in Europe. On the museum's open air site, which covers an area of around 16 hectares (39.5 acre), there are currently 16 mills from 12 different countries (as at 2009). The mills are either original or faithful reproductions and are set in landscapes typical of their origins. Right across the site are historic artefacts associated with mills and the milling industry. The museum site is easily accessed by road; nearby is the intersection between the B 4
Bundesstraße 4
The Bundesstraße 4 is a German federal highway running in a northwesterly to southly direction from the state of Schleswig-Holstein to Bavaria...
and B 188
Bundesstraße 188
The Bundesstraße 188 or B 188 is one of the longer German federal highways crossing northern Germany. It connects the B3 with the B5....
federal highways. The museum is station 65 on the Lower Saxon Mill Road
Lower Saxon Mill Road
The Lower Saxon Mill Road is a holiday route that guides visitors to watermills and windmills in the north German state of Lower Saxony and thus links the interests of historic monument conservation with those of the tourist industry.-Emblem:...
.
Museum origins
The history of the mill museum is closely linked to its founder and owner, Horst Wrobel. In 1965 he discovered an old post millPost mill
The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. The defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. The earliest post mills in England are thought to have...
that was still working, on the Elm ridge at Abbenrode during an outing. Horst Wrobel made a replica of the mill at a scale of 1:25 and then collected all kinds of material about windmills and watermills. In 1974 he established a private museum in Suhlendorf
Suhlendorf
Suhlendorf is a municipality in the district of Uelzen, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
with the first models of mills that he had built. In order to create a larger scale model, he first made overtures in 1977 to the district of Gifhorn, who then actively supported the project. In the same year the two parties concluded a leasehold agreement for the land of the future museum site.
From 1980 to today
The mill museum opened its doors in 1980 following two years of extensive field engineering by the Aller-Ohre-Verband. With the aid of bulldozers and flushing dredgers, the terrain was landscaped and numerous ditches and ponds created, as well as a 5 hectare mill lake. The lake also acts as a retention basinRetention basin
A retention basin is used to manage stormwater runoff to prevent flooding and downstream erosion, and improve water quality in an adjacent river, stream, lake or bay. Sometimes called a wet pond or wet detention basin, it is an artificial lake with vegetation around the perimeter, and includes a...
to prevent flooding to and to regulate the flow of the river Ise
Ise (river)
The Ise is a roughly 50 km long, almost natural river in East Lower Saxony, Germany, which crosses the district of Gifhorn from north to south and discharges into the Aller at Gifhorn itself.- Course :...
. The first structures to be built were the exhibition hall and three mills (The Kellerholländer, the post mill (Bockwindmühle) and the Tyrolean watermill).
Mill models
The heart of the museum site is the 800 m² exhibition hall housing objects from mills and the milling industry. In addition, there are 49 miniature model windmills and watermills - detailed and accurate scale models of the originals - from 20 countries on display. They provide information about those processes that man made use of in employing wind and water power to carry out heavy work before the discovery of the steam engineSteam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...
.
Examples of the mill models:
|
Bremen The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is... mill, Am Wall County Wexford County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local... Montmartre Montmartre is a hill which is 130 metres high, giving its name to the surrounding district, in the north of Paris in the 18th arrondissement, a part of the Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on its summit and as a nightclub district... Castile-La Mancha Castile-La Mancha is an autonomous community of Spain. Castile-La Mancha is bordered by Castile and León, Madrid, Aragon, Valencia, Murcia, Andalusia, and Extremadura. It is one of the most sparsely populated of Spain's autonomous communities... Cape Town Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality... Post mill The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. The defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. The earliest post mills in England are thought to have... (Pfahlmühle) from Bessarabia Bessarabia Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west.... |
The Dorfplatz
The centrepiece of the open air museumOpen air museum
An open-air museum is a distinct type of museum exhibiting its collections out-of-doors. The first open-air museums were established in Scandinavia towards the end of the nineteenth century, and the concept soon spread throughout Europe and North America. Open-air museums are variously known as...
is the village square or Dorfplatz with a collection of three timber-framed houses, which are arranged in the form of a Rundling
Rundling
A Rundling or place village is a primitive form of circular village, typical of Slav settlements in Europe in the Early Medieval period....
village:
- The Backhaus, a bakerBakerA baker is someone who bakes and sells bread, Cakes and similar foods may also be produced, as the traditional boundaries between what is produced by a baker as opposed to a pastry chef have blurred in recent decades...
's or millerMillerA miller usually refers to a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a cereal crop to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents in other languages around the world...
's house, was built in 1983 as as four-post timber-framed house (of the Lower Saxon house type) and has room for around 250 guests. - The Brothaus or bakery from 1985 is a replica of a bakehouse (Backhaus) on a traditional farm near Gifhorn. Here bread and cakes based on traditional recipes are baked in two, wood-fired, stone, baking ovens and sold to the museum's visitors.
- The Trachtenhaus appeared in 1990 as a timber-framed building and, with its old bakery (Backstube) and restaurant, has seating for around 500 guests.
On the square is the "international mill tree". This is a pole, about 30 metres high, on which the state coats-of-arms of all the countries represented by the mills in the museum may be found, as well as wood carvings with milling motifs.
Sanssouci, a German smock millSmock millThe smock mill is a type of windmill that consists of a sloping, horizontally weatherboarded tower, usually with six or eight sides. It is topped with a roof or cap that rotates to bring the sails into the wind...
A smock millSmock mill
The smock mill is a type of windmill that consists of a sloping, horizontally weatherboarded tower, usually with six or eight sides. It is topped with a roof or cap that rotates to bring the sails into the wind...
has stood on the Dorfplatz since 1984 which is based on the historic mill near the castle of Sanssouci
Sanssouci
Sanssouci is the name of the former summer palace of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, in Potsdam, near Berlin. It is often counted among the German rivals of Versailles. While Sanssouci is in the more intimate Rococo style and is far smaller than its French Baroque counterpart, it too is...
in Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
. The 40 metre high original was built in 1788, burnt down in 1945 during the final clashes of the Second World War and was rebuilt in Potsdam in 1993. The mill near the royal residence became famous through a legend that its clattering disturbed Frederick the Great. When the king threatened it with compulsory purchase, the miller was referred to the Kammergericht, or Supreme Court, in Berlin. The German name for this type of mill, Galerieholländer ("Dutch gallery mill"), refers to the circular gallery on the fourth story of the mill. The mill thus has enormous dimensions. Inside the Sansoucci mill at Gifhorn, the story of the mill museum is presented.
Viktoria, a German post millPost millThe post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. The defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. The earliest post mills in England are thought to have...
The Viktoria post mill comes from the nearby village of OsloßOsloß
Osloß is a municipality in the district of Gifhorn, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
and may therefore be considered typical of the local area. In 1882 it was erected there by a miller who had bought the mill in Neuhaldensleben district. Its original year of construction is given on the mill as 1816. It closed in 1940 and fell into disrepair. The district of Gifhorn bought the dilapidated mill in 1977 and gave it into the charge of the museum owner, Horst Wrobel. It was restored with the help of donations and, in 1980, was rebuilt at the mill museum in working order.
The German term for this type of mill, Bockwindmühle, refers to a mill in which the entire millhouse, stands on, or, more precisely, hangs from, a trestle or Bock. The millhouse along with its equipment was turned into the wind before work was begun. According to the Prussian Civil Code of 1794, a Bockwindmühle was not counted as a building in its narrowest sense, but as a machine. That meant that the owner did not have to pay house interest tax (Hauszinssteuer) for his workplace.
Immanuel, a German tower millTower millA tower mill is a type of windmill which consists of a brick or stone tower, on top of which sits a roof or cap which can be turned to bring the sails into the wind....
This tower millTower mill
A tower mill is a type of windmill which consists of a brick or stone tower, on top of which sits a roof or cap which can be turned to bring the sails into the wind....
comes from Westdorf in the district of Dithmarschen
Dithmarschen
Dithmarschen is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Nordfriesland, Schleswig-Flensburg, Rendsburg-Eckernförde, and Steinburg, by the state of Lower Saxony , and by the North Sea.-Geography:The district is located on the North Sea...
, where it was built in 1848 under the name Immanuel. It is one of the original three mills that was established at the museum. It is described in German as a Bergholländer ("Dutch hill mill") or Kellerholländer ("Dutch cellar mill"). These terms indicated that, in the former case that the mill was built on a small hill, and in the latter, that it had a cellar into which the horses and carts could be driven. During the course of its history the mill was modified many times and evolved into a highly technical mill including, inter alia an automatic wind rose
Wind rose
A wind rose is a graphic tool used by meteorologists to give a succinct view of how wind speed and direction are typically distributed at a particular location. Historically, wind roses were predecessors of the compass rose , as there was no differentiation between a cardinal direction and the wind...
. The sails could be adjusted to the wind speed. In 1969 the last miller offered to donate the mill in a newspaper advert on the condition that it was rebuilt. The newspaper publisher, Axel Springer
Axel Springer
Axel Springer , was a German journalist and the founder and owner of the Axel Springer AG publishing company.-Early life:...
, acquired the mill and had it restored. Later he donated it to the mill museum, where it was rebuilt in 1979.
Tyrolian watermill
The roughly 300 year-old watermill from Iselsberg-StronachIselsberg-Stronach
Iselsberg-Stronach is a municipality in the district of Lienz in Tyrol in Austria....
near Lienz
Lienz
Lienz is a medieval town in the Austrian state of Tyrol. It is the administrative centre of the Lienz district, which covers all of East Tyrol. The municipality also includes the cadastral subdivision of Patriasdorf.-Geography:...
in the Tyrol
Tyrol (state)
Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
is also one of the first three mills of the museum and was built here in 1979. It used to stand by a mountain stream in the Lesachtal
Lesachtal
The Lesachtal is a valley in the Austrian state of Carinthia. It is the uppermost part of the valley formed by the Gail River, and stretches from the border between East Tyrol and Carinthia to Kötschach-Mauthen ....
valley in East Tyrol and is driven on the museum site by a pond. The mill, made of solid larch logs, has two overshot water wheels, that drive two milling gears.
Rossmühle, a German horse millHorse millA horse mill is a mill that uses a horse as the power source. Any milling process can be powered in this way, but the most frequent use of animal power in horse mills was for grinding grain and pumping water. Other animals used for powering mills include dogs, donkeys and oxen. Engines powered by...
The Rossmühle is probably the largest horse millHorse mill
A horse mill is a mill that uses a horse as the power source. Any milling process can be powered in this way, but the most frequent use of animal power in horse mills was for grinding grain and pumping water. Other animals used for powering mills include dogs, donkeys and oxen. Engines powered by...
(Pferdemühle) in Germany and comes from Hüllhorst-Oberbauerschaft in the district of Minden-Lübbecke. The original was built in 1797 and this replica erected in 1982. It is an octagonal timber-framed building. In the interior, horses walked around in a circle turning a wooden cogwheel with a power of one horsepower
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
(PS) each. The cogwheel, with its 320 teeth and diameter of 32 metres, is the largest known of its type. It drove a stamping mill, used in the production of flax
Flax
Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...
, and a corn mill.
Mykonos, a Greek mill
When the museum was expanded in 1987 a replica of a Greek windmill on the Cycladic island of MykonosMykonos
Mykonos is a Greek island, part of the Cyclades, lying between Tinos, Syros, Paros and Naxos. The island spans an area of and rises to an elevation of at its highest point. There are 9,320 inhabitants most of whom live in the largest town, Mykonos, which lies on the west coast. The town is also...
was constructed on an artificial island on the site. It is a white tower mill
Tower mill
A tower mill is a type of windmill which consists of a brick or stone tower, on top of which sits a roof or cap which can be turned to bring the sails into the wind....
with a pointed roof and twelve sails.
Natascha, a Ukrainian windmill
The replica of a Ukrainian windmill, the Natascha, was opened in 1988 in the presence of the consul general of the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, an occasion intended to foster positive contacts with the former Communist state. The mill's prototype stands in Gifhorn
Gifhorn
Gifhorn is a town and capital of the district Gifhorn in the east of Lower Saxony, Germany. It has a population of about 42,000 and is mainly influenced by the small distance to the industrial and commercially important cities nearby, Brunswick and Wolfsburg...
's partner town of Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi
Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi
Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi is a city located in the Cherkasy Oblast in central Ukraine. The city rests on the banks of the Ros' River, and is the administrative center of the Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi Raion ....
in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
near Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, where it acts as a restaurant today under the name of Vitrjak ("windmill"). The mill has a base made of solid pine and spruce logs built in log cabin style. The long, narrow tower only houses a driveshaft. Like many Ukrainian structures, the windows, doors and exposed brickwork are richly decorated.
Hungarian Danube ship millShip millThe ship-mill grinder today is a rare type of watermill. Its first recorded use dates back to mid-6th century AD Italy.- Technology :...
In 1989, after taking just one year to build, the DanubeDanube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
ship mill
Ship mill
The ship-mill grinder today is a rare type of watermill. Its first recorded use dates back to mid-6th century AD Italy.- Technology :...
, Julischka, went into operation on the Ise
Ise (river)
The Ise is a roughly 50 km long, almost natural river in East Lower Saxony, Germany, which crosses the district of Gifhorn from north to south and discharges into the Aller at Gifhorn itself.- Course :...
. It consists of two wooden boats between which a paddle wheel turns. In the larger hull is the mill gear and the miller's room. The smaller hull supports the axle of the paddle wheel which rotates in the river. The mill was built by:
- Shipyard workers from the shipyard in the Hungarian town of MohácsMohácsMohács is a town in Baranya county, Hungary on the right bank of the Danube.-History:Two famous battles took place there:# Battle of Mohács, 1526# Battle of Mohács, 1687...
- Museum experts from the open air museum at Szentendre near BudapestBudapestBudapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
- Carpenters from Lower Saxony
- A mill construction firm from Belgium
With this type of mill the owner is both miller
Miller
A miller usually refers to a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a cereal crop to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents in other languages around the world...
and ship's captain
Captain (nautical)
A sea captain is a licensed mariner in ultimate command of the vessel. The captain is responsible for its safe and efficient operation, including cargo operations, navigation, crew management and ensuring that the vessel complies with local and international laws, as well as company and flag...
. He can search for the best water flow in the river. The ship mill has the disadvantage of being an obstacle to shipping so that, in the 19th century, regulations had to be introduced. In 1861 the construction of ship mills was banned on the River Rhine, consequently the last mill of this type disappeared in 1926. Such river mills have completely disappeared from today's rural scene, because they only have a life of about 50 years. They had been invented by as early as 536 during the siege of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
by the Ostrogoths. Their heyday was during the 16th and 17th centuries.
Algarve, a Portuguese windmill
This replica mill was erected in 1993 next to the Greek mill and comes from Torres VedrasTorres Vedras
Torres Vedras is a city and a municipality in the district of Lisbon, Portugal, about 50 km north of Lisbon. It belongs to the Oeste subregion and the Centro region.The municipality covers an area of 405.89 km² distributed over 20 freguesias...
in central Portugal. It also represents the type of mill found on the Algarve coast. The mill, with its four triangular sails, is typical of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and the Mediterranean area.
Balearic windmill from Majorca
The corn mill, Moli de Tramuntana was built in 2000 based on the mills near Palma on the Balearic island of Majorca. Many such mills would be built in a row on elevated land. The round tower stands on a rectangular base, which was also the residence for the miller's family. The mill has six fabric covered sails with a diameter of about 20 metres. In the museum mill there is an exhibition in the basement of the Mills of Majorca, Yesterday and Today. Representatives of the society, "Friends of the Mills of Majorca" came to the foundation stone ceremony.Russian post mill
This Russian farmer's windmill was built in Russia in 2001 and transported to Gifhorn by lorry. It is a replica of a typical Russian agricultural mill from the north Russian region around Archangelsk. The mill is a present from the Andrej Rublijow Foundation from MoscowMoscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, which is dedicated to the conservation of Russian architectural heritage.
Provençal windmill from France
The Alphonse Daudet windmill was built in 2002 (photo: see above) as a replica. The prototype was built in 1813 in Fontvieille near ArlesArles
Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence....
in French Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
. The poet, Alphonse Daudet
Alphonse Daudet
Alphonse Daudet was a French novelist. He was the father of Léon Daudet and Lucien Daudet.- Early life :Alphonse Daudet was born in Nîmes, France. His family, on both sides, belonged to the bourgeoisie. The father, Vincent Daudet, was a silk manufacturer — a man dogged through life by misfortune...
(1840–1897), immortalised it in the 19th century in his book, Letters From my Mill. In 1935 the "Society of the Friends of Alphonse Daudet" dedicated the mill as a museum and, in 1936, it appeared on a French postage stamp. This type of mill first appeared in the 12th century and is one of the oldest in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Korean watermill
This Korean stamp millStamp mill
A stamp mill is a type of mill machine that crushes material by pounding rather than grinding, either for further processing or for extraction of metallic ores. Breaking material down is a type of unit operation....
appeared in 2003, the first Asian mill on the museum site. It is an overshot mill from a hill region in the province of Gangwon-do
Gangwon-do (South Korea)
Gangwon-do is a province of South Korea, with its capital at Chuncheon. Before the division of Korea in 1945, Gangwon and its North Korean neighbour Kangwŏn formed a single province.-History:...
in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. Hill farmers used this type of farm in the 19th century to grind corn. The Gifhorn mill was built in Korea using old traditional methods and Korean firs and birches and transported by ship to Germany, where three specialists from Korea erected it. It is a present from the Korean governor in whose district this type of mill was used.
Taiwanese water treadmillTreadmillA treadmill is an exercise machine for running or walking while staying in one place. The word treadmill traditionally refers to a type of mill which was operated by a person or animal treading steps of a wheel to grind grain...
From the island of TaiwanTaiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
comes this water treadmill
Treadmill
A treadmill is an exercise machine for running or walking while staying in one place. The word treadmill traditionally refers to a type of mill which was operated by a person or animal treading steps of a wheel to grind grain...
, which was used to scoop water up and raise it to a higher level. This is the only mill of this type that exists in that country. This replica of a historic water treadmill is a loan from the vocational schools in the district of Gifhorn that have a school partnership arrangement with Taiwan.
Serbian watermill
The old Serbian mill, mudra Milica, is the latest and 15th mill in the mill museum. It was added in May 2005 and is around 100 years old. It is a vortex or horizontal water wheel (Löffelradmühle) from western SerbiaSerbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. This type of mill was the forerunner of the Pelton turbine. Its bucket water wheels were especially useful where there were small amounts of water and steep gradients. This type was used especially in mountain regions, like the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
and the Carpathians. The mill was a present from the Serbian-Orthodox
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
Lavrentije of the diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
of Šabac
Šabac
Šabac is a city and municipality in western Serbia, along the Sava river, in the historic region of Mačva. It is the administrative center of the Mačva District. The city has a population of 52,822 , while population of the municipality is 115,347...
-Valjevo
Valjevo
Valjevo is a city and municipality located in western Serbia. It is the center of the Kolubara District, which includes five other smaller municipalities with a total population of almost 180,000 people...
to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the mill museum.
Lady Devorgilla, a Scottish windmill
The Lady Devorgilla mill is not located on the museum site itself, but within eyeshot of the museum on a lake on the edge of the town centre. It acts as a romantic backdrop for marriages and belongs to the town of Gifhorn. It is a replica of a ScottishScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
windmill on Corbey Hill and dates to 1790. The original stands in Gifhorn's Scottish partner town of Dumfries
Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It was one of the nine administrative 'regions' of mainland Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government etc. Act 1973...
.
The Russian stave churchStave churchA stave church is a medieval wooden church with a post and beam construction related to timber framing. The wall frames are filled with vertical planks. The load-bearing posts have lent their name to the building technique...
The 27 metre high stave churchStave church
A stave church is a medieval wooden church with a post and beam construction related to timber framing. The wall frames are filled with vertical planks. The load-bearing posts have lent their name to the building technique...
on the museum site with its eight gilded domes is a replica of the wooden Russian Orthodox
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
church dedicated to Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas , also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker...
. The Muscovite patriarch
Patriarch
Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...
, Alexy II, formerly head of 100 million Russian Orthodox Christians, opened it in 1995. In the church there is an exhibition with liturgical artefacts (icon
Icon
An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...
s, oil lamps, candlesticks, vestments, embroidery
Embroidery
Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
, fonts and bibles) from the Moscow patriarchate
Patriarchate
A patriarchate is the office or jurisdiction of a patriarch. A patriarch, as the term is used here, is either* one of the highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, earlier, the five that were included in the Pentarchy: Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem, but now nine,...
. There is an additional charge for visiting the interior of this impressive, cathedral-like building, decorated with iconic paintings. The original was built in 1765 as a Transfiguration of Christ Church (Christi-Verklärungskirche) in the central Russian village of Kosljatjewo.
Sources
- Wrobel, Rosita: Das internationale Wind- und Wassermühlenmuseum in: Museen und Ausflugziele im Raum Gifhorn-Wolfsburg, Gifhorn 1989.