7th–9th century CE (Persia); 12th century (Europe)
◐Approximate date
Persia and northwest Europe
Associated with
Persian and European millwrights
Anonymous builders
Plate 034
7th–9th century CE
Persia and northwest Europe
No photograph is shown for this exhibition. The museum displays an image only where it can show the object honestly.
About this date
Vertical-axis windmills are described in Persia (Sistan) from the 9th century. Horizontal-axis windmills appear in written records in northwest Europe in the 1180s.
About credit
The vertical-axis Persian design and the European post mill are different machines. Whether one inspired the other is debated.
Chapter II
The world before
Life before the Windmill
Grain was ground by hand or animals, or by water mills that required streams.
II
The human achievement
How it came about
In Persia, vertical sails in a walled structure turned millstones. In Europe, a post mill carried its whole body on a central post, so millers could turn the sails into the wind. Later tower mills and the 16th-century Dutch designs improved efficiency.
III
Understanding the invention
How it works
The Windmill, explained in two steps.
01
Step 01 of 02
Sails catch wind
Angled sails turn when wind pushes them.
Sails catch wind
Gears transfer power
IV
The transformation
What changed for humanity
Drainage
In the Netherlands, windmills pumped water to reclaim land from the sea.
Milling
Communities away from rivers had local mills.
Windmills opened flat, windy regions to milling and drainage, notably in the Netherlands.
V
Before and after
Life before and after The Windmill
Before
Only where water or animals were available.
After
Wherever the wind blew.
On larger screens, drag the divider (or use the arrow keys) to give more room to the world before or after.
VI
Its legacy
What came after
MHI 034
The Windmill
Beyond the collection
Wind turbines
Modern turbines generate electricity from the same source.
