Flour mills of Formentera (Formentera)

Flour mills of Formentera

With the help of the wind
Flour mills of Formentera

With the help of the wind
Flour mills of Formentera

With the help of the wind
Flour mills of Formentera

With the help of the wind

Flour mills of Formentera

With the help of the wind

During the 16th century, windmills started to be built in Spain, especially in areas with little water like La Mancha in the southwest of the peninsula, as well as on the Canary and Balearic Islands. There were mills for salt, pottery, water extraction, flour and other purposes. They all became a crucial part of the Spanish economy until the late 19th century.

On Formentera, flour windmills were the most common. In Sant Francesc Xavier, in the “venta des Pi des Català”, lies the En Teuet mill, built in 1760 and regarded as the oldest mill on the island. In Sant Francesc, too, in the “venta de sa Miranda”, lies the En Jeroni mill built in the late 18th century. In the parish of El Pilar de la Mola lies the old mill built in 1778, which only stopped operating in 1964.

These brick mills tend to be three stories high. The highest floor was used for the machinery and the millstone, the middle one was where the flour was collected, and the ground floor was used for storage. The ceilings were always conical and movable in order to orient the wooden blades in the direction of the wind.