Tremuja and moles (miller's tools)

What is

The working parts of the miller : the tremuja (hopper) that doses the grain and the moles (stones) that grind it.

How is

• Tremuja: box in the shape of a pyramid or inverted truncated cone; Through the lower mouth the grain falls into the moles.
• Mola sobirana / runner: the one who spins.
• Mola cassock / jussana: the fixed one.
• Mola bonfire: made of flint pieces fitted into an iron ring (Mall.).
• Catalan Mola: large and in one piece (Mall.).
• Rodet: in the water mill, horizontal wheel with blades (in other areas).
• Caparrot: in the windmill, head of the shaft outside the tower (Mall.).

How is fa

• The moles are carved and pitted with grooves; The bonfire is assembled with imported flint pieces (origin to be verified).

Com s'usa

• The tremuja is filled, the jet is regulated, the runner rotates; the flour comes out over the edge.
• When the stone is smoothed, the miller lifts it and chops it.

Vocabulary

• tremuja: hopper.
• mola foguera / catalana / negra / blanca: types of stone.
• picar les moles: go over the grooves.
• rodet: rodezno.
• caparrot: head of the windmill shaft.

History

• 1410: inventory with "two moles... la mola jussana, la mola sobirana, la tremuja" (Catalan document).
• Llull: the miller chops the two moles so that they grind better.

On veure'n

• Restored windmills of Mallorca (see windmills ); moles reused in patios and gardens.

Why is it design

• Working surface: the pattern of grooves on the mola decides the flour.
• Gravity dosing without extra energy.

For the project

• Inventory of masses reused as urban furniture; chopped drawing.

Sources

• dcvb.iec.cat/results.asp?Word=tremuja
• dcvb.iec.cat/results.asp?Word=mola
• dcvb.iec.cat/results.asp?Word=rodet
• dcvb.iec.cat/results.asp?Word=caparrot

Working text from the Disseny Indígena knowledge base, machine-translated from Spanish.

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