Editing Millstone (section)

=== The Pompeian mill or "blood" mill ===
With a diameter limited to the reach of an arm's movement, i.e. 40 to 70 cm, the hand mill could only produce a limited quantity of flour and was therefore essentially reserved for domestic use. By increasing the diameter and, above all, the height of the ''meta'' (nether millstone) and the ''catillus'' (runner millstone), the Romans were able to overcome this constraint with the animal-drawn ''Pompeian mill'', also known as the ''"blood" mill''.<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> See the expression ''moulin à sang'' in Blanchemanche Philippe. Georges Cornet, "Le paysan et son outil. Essai d'histoire technique des céréales (France, 8th - 15th century)", ''Études rurales'', No.&nbsp;129-130, 1993, {{p.|201-204}} [https://www.persee.fr/doc/rural_0014-2182_1993_num_129_1_3417_t1_0201_0000_3 read online]</ref>

In this mill, the nether millstone is conical at the top and the runner millstone looks like an [[hourglass]], with its lower half covering the conical top of the nether millstone. The upper part of the runner millstone acts as a [[funnel]], and a slight gap is maintained between the two millstones. The running wheel pivots around a wooden axle embedded in the standing wheel, and it is thanks to its suspension on this axle that the gap between the two wheels is ensured. This type of millstone could be powered either by two or four men, or by animal rides, hence its name ''mola asinaria'', literally "donkey mill".

An example of this type of millstone can be found as early as the [[Classical antiquity|Classical era]], used to grind ore in the [[Mines of Laurion|Laurion mines]],<ref name="Gille"><sup>(fr)</sup> ''Histoire des techniques'' - [[Bertrand Gille (historian)|Bertrand Gille]]</ref> although it did not overtake the less efficient reciprocating millstone.<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> Roland Étienne, Christel Müller, Francis Prost, ''Archéologie historique de la Grèce antique'', Ellipses, 2006, {{p.|180}}</ref> Despite its qualities, it didn't really spread throughout the Roman world until later.<ref name="Gille" /> They were found throughout the [[Mediterranean Basin|Mediterranean basin]], but never in very large numbers, except in Italy. Their very high cost - 1,250 [[Denarius|denarii]] in the Late Roman period, compared with 250 denarii for hand millstones - meant that they were only used by millers and bakers. In [[Gaul]], millstones are known from [[Lyon]], [[Saint-Raphaël, Var|Saint-Raphaël]], [[Paris]], [[Amiens]] and [[Clermont-Ferrand]], all fashioned from basalt from the Eifel, Volvic or Cap d'Agde.<ref name="pug" />

During the Late Antiquity, the donkey mill retreated, probably disappearing after the 5th century as a result of the expansion of the watermill, then the [[windmill]], except in [[Sardinia]], where it remained until the 20th century.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}
<gallery mode="packed-overlay" heights="200" widths="250">
File:Mill-stone_Chiaramonti_Inv1370_n2.jpg|[[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic]] horse-powered grinding mill. Detail of a 2nd-century [[Ancient Roman sarcophagi|Roman sarcophagus]]. [[Vatican Museums]]
File:Meule_tournante-tag.svg|Schematic diagram of the grinding mill: '''1-''' Pivot '''2-''' Hitch frame '''3-''' Running wheel '''4-''' Lying wheel
File:Corn_mill_(archaeological_park_Xanten,_Germany,_2005-04-23).jpg|[[Wheat]] mill. [[Xanten]] archaeological park
File:Baeckerei_pompeji_kampanien_italien.jpg|Millstones made of two elements of [[Lava|volcanic lava]].<ref>Two square-section iron boxes (arm fasteners) held the levers, which were secured by a wooden peg slid into the round-section hole running right through them.</ref> Bakery in [[Pompeii]].
File:Carl_Bloch_-_Samson_and_the_Philistines_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg|''[[Samson]], prisoner of the [[Philistines]], turns the millstone in prison'', Carl Bloch (1863)
</gallery>