Editing Millstone (section)

== Milling systems ==
Until the invention of the [[watermill]], mills operated using "strength-powered", i.e. the force of animals or people.
[[File:Metate (fcm).jpg|thumb|Mexican Metate]]

=== The metate ===
{{Main articles|Metate}}
The ''metate'' is a nether millstone for domestic use, for grinding [[Maize|corn]]. It has been used for several thousand years (around 3000 BC) in the cultural area of [[Mesoamerica]], and its name comes from the [[Nahuatl]] "''metatl''".<ref name="colloque5"><sup>(fr)</sup> Meules à grains. Actes du colloque international de La Ferté-sous-Jouarre.</ref>

Today's millstones are monolithic, usually made of [[basalt]], apodous, or tripod, rectangular, and slightly concave on the grinding surface. These millstones are associated with a two-handed wheel, called a "''mano''", whose size generally exceeds the width of the millstone and which is driven in an alternating rectilinear motion. On tripod wheels, one of the legs is slightly higher than the other two, giving the whole unit an inclination, with the user standing in front of the highest part.

The manufacture of millstones was essentially a male occupation. In [[Pre-Columbian era|pre-Hispanic]] times, millers used only stone tools, a practice that persisted in some villages until the mid-20th century. The use of metal tools, probably inherited from building stonemasons, made it possible to use the hardest basalts, resulting in millstones with a lifespan of over thirty years. While the manufacture of apod millstones from blocks of stone naturally polished in a riverbed was once within the reach of many farmers, the production of tripode metates requires specialized craftsmanship.

Grinding plays a key role in [[Mexican cuisine]]. Dry grinding is possible, but very few recipes are produced in this way: [[Coffee|roasted coffee]], roasted corn or [[Bean|beans]], [[salt]], sugar loaves, and cocoa are ground into powder. But most preparations require grinding with water. Fruits are ground into juices, beans or boiled vegetables, ingredients are added to various spicy sauces and, above all, corn is used to make the [[Tortilla|tortillas]] that form the basis of every meal. The latter are made from [[Hominy|nixtamal]], i.e. dry corn kernels cooked with lime, then rinsed with water, which softens the kernels and produces a paste. Maize or nixtamal can be ground for preparations other than patties: ''[[Tamale|tamales]], [[pozole]], [[atole]], [[pinole]]'', and ''[[masa]]'', with variations in the fineness of the grind depending on the use.
[[File:TortillaMakingSalvador.jpg|left|thumb|[[Tortilla]]-making in [[El Salvador]], circa 1900]]
The metate was used exclusively by women, and in [[Mixtec culture|Mixtec lands]], the place where the millstone is located was a space reserved for women. A couple often acquires, or is given, a millstone when they set up home. This acquisition represents a major expense in the life of a Mixtec peasant, as evidenced by the wills of nobles and wealthy peasants from the 16th to 18th centuries, which included metates.<ref name="colloque5" />

Daily tortillas are made from sufficiently moistened ''corn dough'', which, unlike flour, cannot be preserved. This technical characteristic no doubt explains why domestic metates were not replaced centuries ago by mills, as they were in Europe. During the wars of the 19th century and the [[Mexican Revolution|Mexican Revolution of 1910]], Mexican armies were accompanied by women and metates to ensure the stewardship of the country; the [[Spanish Empire|Spanish conquest]] did not replace tortillas with bread - quite the contrary. At the end of the 19th century, the owners of the large plantations introduced motorized corn mills, which freed up female labor for the fields.<ref>Here we find an example of the influence of a technical system on a social system, like the hitching system described by Major Richard Lefebvre des Noëttes</ref> From 1920 onwards, electric mills appeared in the countryside, owned by municipalities, [[Cooperative|cooperatives]] or private individuals. However, still in use today, nether millstones are still part of Mexico's rural heritage.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}

<gallery mode="packed-overlay" heights="200" widths="250">
File:Metate_Maya.jpg|[[Maya civilization|Mayan]] dish depicting the use of a metate to grind [[Cocoa bean|cocoa beans]]. ''Chocolate Museum, [[Bruges]].''
File:Metate_et_mano.jpg|[[Metate]] and mano from the Mayan period. ''Chocolate Museum, [[Bruges]].''
File:Metate_Costa_Rica.jpg|[[Costa Rica|Costa Rican]] funeral metate. ''Chocolate Museum, [[Bruges]].''
File:Tortilleras_aztecas.jpg|[[Aztecs|Aztec]] mother teaching her daughter to make tortillas. ''[[Codex Mendoza]].''
File:Tortilleras_Nebel.jpg|''Las Tortilleras'' (The Tortilla Makers). Hand-colored [[Lithography|lithograph]], [[Mexico]], early 19th century
</gallery>

=== The Olynthus mill ===
[[File:Moulin_Olynthe.svg|thumb|Olynthus mill: 1. Pivot 2. Lever 3. Running wheel with hopper 4. Grinding wheel 5. Table]]
The town of [[Olynthus]] was destroyed in 348 BC by [[Philip II of Macedon|Philip II of Macedonia]], and the name "''Olynthus millstone, Olynthus grinder, Olynthus mill''" has come to be attached to this type of mill, which represents a genuine [[Technological revolution|technical revolution]]. In 1917, the Greek [[Konstantinos Kourouniotis]] elucidated the workings of the [[Hopper (particulate collection container)|hopper]] millstone, which played an important role in [[ancient Greece]].<ref name="ista2"><sup>(fr)</sup> Marie-Claire Amouretti. ''Le pain et l'huile dans la Grèce antique''.</ref>

In the Olynthus mill, the nether millstone(4) is rectangular, resting on a table (5); it measures between 0.42 m and 0.65 m in length, 0.36 m to 0.54 m in width and 0.08 to 0.25 m in thickness. The grinder, which forms the upper millstone (common millstone (3)), is usually rectangular, sometimes oval, with a central hopper parallel to the long sides, designed to receive the grain to be ground. The mill is capped by a horizontal axle attached to a [[Kinematic pair|pivot]] (1) on one side of the table, the other end being operated by a worker who moves the lever (2) back and forth horizontally. The Olynthus mill thus shows the beginnings of mechanization, with millers now standing on their feet, making work easier.

This type of mill certainly appeared as early as the beginning of the 5th century BC. Its use was widespread throughout the Greek civilization in the 4th century B.C., from [[Macedonia (Greece)|Macedonia]] to the [[Peloponnese]], and was adopted as far afield as the islands of [[Anatolia]], [[Egypt]], and modern-day [[Syria]]. It continued into the 1st century B.C., and sometimes even later, as the excavations at the [[Agora]] in [[Athens]] suggest. The importance of this mill type for the Greek world was confirmed by the discovery, in 1967, of 22 hopper mills in the cargo of a ship wrecked off [[Kyrenia ship|Kyrenia]], dated to the end of the 4th century BC. Increasing demand undoubtedly led to standardization in manufacturing and specialization of production centers. For example, flat [[Argolis|Argolidian]] millstones, made of [[andesite]] and [[rhyolite]], were produced from local quarries ([[Isthmus of Corinth]], [[Saronic Gulf]]), while grinders came from more distant quarries (islands of [[Nisyros|Nysiros]], [[Milos]]).<ref name="ista2" />

The use of this type of mill was not limited to grinding cereals, as the finds from [[Thasos]] or [[Lavrio]] suggest: it was also used to grind ore, so as to calibrate it for subsequent selection by washing. It may even have appeared in the mines of [[Pangaion Hills]]. The text by [[Agatharchides]] on the gold mines of Egypt in the 1st century B.C., transmitted by [[Photios I of Constantinople|Photios]] and [[Diodorus Siculus|Diodorus]], mentions a mill with a lever:

"Women and older men then receive this ore crushed to the size of peas, throw it into the millstones, in numerous lines, two or three people standing at each lever and grind it." Photius' version specifies "''on either side''" of the lever.<ref name="ista2" />

=== The rotating millstone ===
{{Main articles|Quern-stone}}
This rotating millstone was spin by many ladies. The millstones name changes in many different parts of India. This is because there are so many different languages. The parts though will still stay the same.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}

It's also known as a "hand millstone", "arm millstone" or "moulinet", and in Latin as a "''molendinum bracchis''" or "''molendinum manuale''".{{Cn|date=March 2025}}

According to de Barry, the oldest circular stone millstone was unearthed in the ruins of the town of [[Olynthus]]: it was the millstone of an [[oil mill]], not a flour mill. Historians [[Marie-Claire Amouretti]] and Georges Comet<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> ''Le livre de l'olivier'', Marie-Claire Amouretti and Georges Comet, Éditions EDISUD (Aix-en-Provence, France), {{ISBN|2-7449-0198-9}}</ref> point out that these millstones pre-date the earliest known examples of circular grain mills. So it was probably through oil production that the first rotary crushing machine was introduced. [[Cereal|Cereals]] and other fruits and seeds followed.<ref><sup>[PDF]</sup> http://www.moulins-a-vent.net/Images/dossier-de-presse.pdf</ref>
[[File:Arab women working primitive grain mill LOC matpc.06018 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Arab women working primitive grain mill in Palestine (circa 1900)]]The oldest rotating millstone are thought to have originated in [[Spain]] 2,500 years ago(600 BC - 400 BC).<ref name="Ritti et al. 2007, 159">{{harvnb|Ritti|Grewe|Kessener|2007|p=158, 159}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Alonso i Martínez |first=Natalia |date=2015 |title=«Moliendo en ibero, moliendo en griego»: aculturación y resistencia tecnológica en el Mediterráneo occidental durante la Edad del Hierro |url=https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=5294175 |journal=Vegueta: Anuario de la Facultad de Geografía e Historia |issue=15 |pages=23–36 |issn=1133-598X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rodríguez Díaz |first=Alonso |last2=Pavón Soldevila |first2=Ignacio |last3=Duque Espino |first3=David M. |last4=Ponce de León Iglesias |first4=Moisés |date=2014 |title=Molinos y molienda en el mundo tartésico: el Guadiana y Tajo Medios |url=https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=4948508 |journal=Revista d'arqueologia de Ponent |issue=24 |pages=189–214 |issn=1131-883X}}</ref> It seems that the rotating millstone spread at the end of the 5th century BC from Spain,<ref name="Ritti et al. 2007, 159" /> and that it was directly derived from attempts to perfect the Olynthus mill.<ref name="pug"><sup>(fr)</sup> [http://www.pug.fr/extrait_ouvrage/Epain1.pdf Et l'Homme créa la meule]</ref> [[André Leroi-Gourhan]] states that "''the transformation of rectilinear reciprocating motion into circular-continuous motion leads to another form of milling''". Some authors do not agree on its geographical origin, located for some "''towards [[Carthage]] and the Syrian-Egyptian region''", "''simultaneously in Spain<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> Alonso Martinez, N. 1995. "Les premières meules rotatives manuelles dans le nord-est de la péninsule Iberique." In ''La Transmission des connaissances techniques'', edited by M.-Cl. Amouretti and G. Comet, 15–23. Cahiers d'histoire des techniques 3. Aix en Provence: L'Université de Provence.</ref><ref><sup>(fr)</sup> Rafael Frankel: The Olynthus Mill, Its Origin, and Diffusion: Typology and Distribution, in ''American Journal of Archaeology'', vol. 107, no. 1 (2003), {{p.|17-19}}</ref> and England''" for others, and even though it was found in China in the 1st century BC.<ref name="pug" /> According to L.A. Moritz, the rotating grain mill only appeared in the first century BC. He bases his demonstration on Latin texts, in particular those of [[Plautus]] and [[Cato the Elder|Cato]], and fixes the introduction of this type between the time of Plautus' death in 184BC and the composition of ''[[De agri cultura]]'', around 160 BC.<ref name="ista2" />

Several types of mills can be identified in Europe, depending on the morphology of the millstones used in these manually operated rotary mills.

The ''Celtic mill'' is made up of massive millstones, with a conical external profile and virtually flat active stone surfaces.

In [[Dacia]], between the 1st century B.C. and the 1st century A.D., the Celtic mill evolved into an intermediate type with two millstones superimposed and integrated, featuring a three-lobed feed opening. The more sharply tapered inner surfaces of the millstones ensured that the grains flowed more quickly under the effect of gravity, but the quality of the flour obtained remained mediocre. On the other hand, the effort required to operate the current millstone is considerable. The profile of the millstones makes them more difficult to cut, imposes a standardization of the millstones, and explains their diffusion and maintenance in a given region.<ref name="ista2" /> Some examples feature flatter wheels, with a much reduced taper, which reduces the stone mass. The speed of rotation became higher, providing a greater [[Gyroscope|gyroscopic effect]], but also requiring the installation of a system of claws fixed with molten lead on the upper side of the movable wheel, to hold it in place around the pivot.<ref name="colloque5" />

[[Roman Empire|Romanization]] led to the widespread use of hand mills, which were perfected in terms of volume by increasing diameter and reducing height and weight. The profile of the millstones became flatter, and a number of improvements were introduced, such as an upper wedge to center the movable wheel on the pivot.<ref name="colloque5" /> A device for adjusting the distance between the millstones (the ''anille'') also appeared, enabling grinding quality to be controlled (1st century B.C.), and radii cut into the millstone could accentuate the natural abrasiveness of the stone.<ref name="pug" /> Later developments, such as the installation of the [[Lever|double lever]] or the use of a [[Crankset|crank]] fixed to the center of the millstone (14th - 15th centuries), meant that this type of hand mill was used in the countryside until the 20th century.<ref name="colloque5" />

Because they wear more quickly, this type of millstone requires a stricter selection of stones, among which basalt has a privileged place. Most of the stone used in Roman times seems to have come from just a few quarries. In France, millstones from [[Cap d'Agde]] supplied [[Languedoc]] and [[Provence]]; further north, quarries from the [[Massif Central]] ([[Volvic]]) supplied a vast territory stretching from Aquitaine to the [[Switzerland|Helvetic valleys]]; finally, from the [[Saône]] valley to the German border, millstones came mainly from Eifel quarries ([[Mayen]]).<ref name="pug" />

In Europe as a whole, the hand mill remained the main milling method until the end of Antiquity, and then throughout the [[Middle Ages]]; it only began to give way to the advances of water and then wind mills.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}
<gallery mode="packed-overlay" heights="200" widths="250">
File:Mons_moulins_meule_ancienne.jpg|Celtic-type hand mill
File:Moulin_celtique-tag.svg|Cross-section of a Celtic arm mill '''1-''' Pivot '''2-''' Lever '''3-''' Running wheel '''4-''' Nether wheel
File:Moulin_dacique-tag.svg|Cross-section of a dacique arm mill '''1-''' Pivot '''2-''' Lever '''3-''' Running wheel '''4-''' Lying wheel '''5-''' Support
File:Roman_Hand_Mill_Sincrai.jpg|Roman hand mill with top shim to center the millstone wheel
File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_135-BB-152-11,_Tibetexpedition,_Tibeter_mit_Handmühle.jpg|Millstone wheel used in [[Tibet]] ([[Lhasa]], 1938)
File:Moulin_type-01.png|Schematic of an antique manual mill in action
File:Moulin_en_auge_type-01.jpg|Diagram of a manual mill in the [[Auge]] region, dating from the 13th to 18th centuries.<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> CHAUSSAT, Alain-Gilles. 2008. Les meules à main rotatives: Collection du musée de Saint-Michel-de-Monjoie dans la Manche, Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, {{p.|120}}.[http://meule-a-main.blogspot.com/]</ref>
</gallery>

=== 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>

=== The Roman trapetum ===
The [[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic]] period also saw the appearance of the olive crusher, which the Romans called the ''trapetum''. Legend has it that it was invented by [[Aristaeus]], and excavations at Olynthus have revealed examples dating back to the 5th century BC.<ref name="Gille" />

The ''trapetum'' was precisely described by Cato the Elder, who gave us the technical names of all its parts. Excavations at Stabies, [[Pompeii]], the villa at [[Boscoreale]] and in [[Roman Africans|Roman Africa]] show that the system was widely used in ancient Rome and disappeared with it.

The ''trapetum'' consists of two plano-convex millstones (3, ''orbes''), standing vertically, supported by a horizontal axis rotating around a vertical pivot (1, ''columella''). This pivot rests on a short stone column (''milliarium'') at the center of a large hemispherical mortar (4). The lying millstone is a stone vat (4, ''mortarium'') whose walls follow the external profile of the two common millstones. The orbs can move in a circular motion inside the ''mortarium'', and are set in motion by the action of two wooden handles (2, ''modioli''). Wooden wedges (''orbiculi'') inserted between the ''milliarium'' and the ''columella'' are used to adjust the height of the orbs above the bottom of the vat. In this system, the olives are not crushed under the millstone, but between the millstone and the sides of the vat.<ref name="ista2" /> As in the previous model, a gap was maintained between the two millstones. The resistance offered by the fruit forces the stone half-spheres to turn slightly on their axis; the two movements combine and the pressure is exerted only moderately, without breaking the stones, which would give bad taste.<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> [http://www.mediterranees.net/civilisation/techniques/agriculture/olea.html Techniques dans l'antiquité gréco-romaine]</ref> The resultant pulp could then be subjected to the action of a press to collect the oil.

=== Millstones of southern Morocco ===
[[File:Moulin_trapetum-tag.svg|thumb|Roman olive mill or ''Trapetum'']]
[[File:Maroc_Essaouira_argane_oil_Luc_Viatour_3.JPG|left|thumb|Hand mill used to make [[argan oil]] by hand]]
A melting pot of African, Eastern and Mediterranean civilizations, [[Morocco]] has preserved tools and techniques from different eras.

The Volubilis site, located in [[Mauretania Tingitana|Mauritania Tingitana]] (northeastern Morocco), features grain and olive mills from the Roman period (1st century-2nd century). These mills consist of a truncated cone-shaped standing millstone and a convex grinding ring to which the wooden machinery is connected, apparently operated without the aid of animal power. In this arrangement, the grinding ring is fitted onto the lying millstone. The ''Volubilitan olive millstone'' differs from the grain millstone by having oblique striations on the truncated surface of the lying millstone and on the inside of the grinding ring. [[Columella]] asserts that,<ref>XII, 52, 6-7</ref> to extract the oil, the millstones (''molae'') are more useful than the crusher (''trapetum''), as they can be lowered or raised according to the size of the fruit, so as to avoid crushing the stone.<ref name="Brun1"><sup>(fr)</sup> Jean-Pierre Brun. ''Archéologie du vin et de l'huile. De la préhistoire à l'époque hellénistique''</ref>

A second type of olive mill can be found on the same site, and consists of a monolithic vat on which a fluted drum turns around a vertical mast like the section of a column. This type of mill is more common and can be found on many sites, even in recent times.<gallery mode="packed-overlay" heights="200" widths="250">
File:Volubilis1.11.JPG|Giant olive wheel - [[Volubilis]]
File:Volubilis1.20.JPG|Grinder ring - [[Volubilis]]
File:Presse_olive_Volubilis.jpg|Olive mill with grinding ring - [[Volubilis]]
File:Volubilis1.1.JPG|Trituration mill with upright millstone - [[Volubilis]]
</gallery>The [[Sideroxylon spinosum|argan tree]] is a woodland species endemic to southwest Morocco. The technical environment of the ''argan mill'' covers its range. It's a stone hand mill used to grind roasted kernels and [[Almond|almonds]].

It stands out from the grain mill thanks to the truncated cone shape and greater height of its runner millstone (''agurf wuflla''), as well as the presence of a spout (''abajjr'' or ''tilst'') and a pouring spout (''ils'') on the nether millstone (''agurf u wadday''). At the center of the nether millstone is a short pivot (''tamnrut'') made of argan wood, around which the upper millstone rotates, pierced by an eyelet (''tit n tzrgt'') into which one or two handfuls of kernels are inserted. The circular movement is interrupted to remove the kernels after the millstone has been lifted. The whole unit can be raised on stones welded together in a "[[Bakehouse (building)|bakehouse]]"-style architecture, allowing embers or argan shells to warm the unit, thus facilitating grinding in winter.<ref name="colloque5" />

=== Chronology of milling systems ===
{{Horizontal timeline|from=-600|to=300|row1=scale|axis-nudge=-1em|caption='''[1]''' Mortar and pestle (-600 to 300), '''[2]''' Flat grinding wheels and grinders (-600 to 300), '''[3]''' Olynthus hopper mill (-450 to 150), '''[4]''' ''Meta'' and ''Catillus'' manual grinding wheels (-250 to 0), '''[5]''' Pompeii-type "blood" mill (-150 to 300), '''[6]''' Manual rotating mill (-350 to 300), '''[7]''' Manual gear mill (250 to 300), '''[8]''' Watermill (-100 to 300).}}Mortars and pestles have survived the centuries and are predominant for barley in Greece, [[starch]] in Italy, and [[millet]] in Africa. They slowly became marginal in some regions, but did not disappear. In classical times, they were still widely represented in Greece and were still used for hulling cereals, even if the advent of adjustable millstones meant that they could now be ground. The advance of naked wheat, particularly common wheat, in Italy and Egypt made them less useful, but they were still mentioned in the Late Roman Empire, in [[Roman Egypt]], and in the [[Christian monasticism|monastic rule]] of [[Isidore of Seville|Saint Isidore]]. With the arrival of maize, they were once again used in certain regions.<ref name="ista"><sup>(fr)</sup> Marie-Claire Amouretti. ''Le pain et l'huile dans la Grèce antique''.</ref>

A first typology of milling systems can be drawn up according to the driving force used; a complementary approach will look at the social context in which the mechanism is implemented.

According to [[Diocletian|Diocletian's]] edict, the "blood" mill costed six times more than the hand mill, and the watermill eight times more. The latter therefore competed mainly with the "blood" mill, and took almost three centuries to supplant it. This was also the time it took the "blood" mill to supplant the hopper mill, and the hopper mill to supplant the flat millstone.

It seems that the watermill originated in the Eastern Mediterranean. An inscription from the [[Phrygian language|Phrygian]] town of [[Orcistus]],<ref>The town of Orcistus is mentioned in the ''Tabula Peutingeriana'' (Table de Peutinger) and corresponds to the Turkish site of ''Alikel Yaila'', also known as ''Alekian''.</ref> which praised the advantages of its site in order to retain its privileges, states that it possesses "''thanks to the slope of the waters flowing through it, a large number of watermills''". At the beginning of the [[Anno Domini|Christian era]], the watermill was still a novelty in the western Mediterranean, and [[Vitruvius]] classed it with irrigation machines. This type of mill proved ill-suited to the design of Pompeian millstones. In [[Caligula|Caligula's]] time, "blood" mills were still dominant, as [[Apuleius]] describes. Over the course of the 1st and 2nd centuries, the watermill slowly spread to a wide variety of provinces: [[Brittany]], Gaul, and Africa, where the rotary millstone was often more widespread than the Pompeian mill. Over the course of the 4th century, the watermill slowly replaced the "blood" mill in Rome itself, becoming the predominant mill in the 2nd century. While there were some spectacular achievements in cities, such as the Barbegal mill in Arles, the watermill seems to have spread more slowly to rural villas, as [[Rutilius Taurus Aemilianus Palladius|Palladius]] indicates.<ref name="ista" />

We don't really know how the Greeks processed their cereals between the 1st and 4th centuries. The "blood" mill was undoubtedly widespread, as attested by the legend of Lucius' donkey, borrowed by [[Lucian|Lucian of Samosata]] and Apuleius. The coexistence of several types of milling seems to be the rule in the [[Aegean Sea|Aegean]] world, and the codification of Diocletian's edict in the 2nd century, which established three types of mills (hand, blood, and water), can still be found in the [[Byzantine rural code]] in the 6th century, and even in travellers' accounts in the 17th century.<ref name="ista" />

In the Mediterranean, watermills, which depended on water supply, progressed especially when they had a complement to avoid the vagaries of the dry season. In this context, windmills undoubtedly contributed to the spread of watermills as early as the 11th century in regions such as Provence and the Greek islands.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}

=== Other milling systems ===

==== Assembled millstones ====
[[File:Boll_Muehlsteine_3811.jpg|thumb|Pair of grinding wheels made of assembled tiles]]
In a study of millstones in Flanders from the Middle Ages to the [[French Revolution]], Jean Bruggeman<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> [http://asso.nordnet.fr/aramnord/jean_bruggeman_qui_est_il.htm Jean Bruggeman, l'Historien des Moulins] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080217061039/http://asso.nordnet.fr/aramnord/jean_bruggeman_qui_est_il.htm |date=17 February 2008 }}</ref> points out that medieval millstones were always monolithic, that black basalt stones were still monolithic in later centuries, and that white stones remained so until the 18th century. However, "''gisantes''" were sometimes made up of several irregularly-shaped pieces. These were bound in [[plaster]], encased in an iron or wooden casing, and sometimes placed on a bed of cemented bricks.

In fact, the invention of millstones made of pieces, i.e. an assembly of several stones or tiles, remains difficult to date precisely.<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> Actes du colloque international de La Ferté-sous-Jouarre, {{p.|297}}</ref>

In the 15th century, the river trade passing through Paris was strictly controlled by the [[Hanseatic League]] of water merchants; "French companies" had to inform the clerks of the names of their partners, the city of destination, and the nature and value of the cargo. Thus, on May 3, 1452, a Rouen merchant named Robert Le Cornu declared that he was bringing to Normandy one or more boats loaded with 35 millstones, 5 blinkers, 100 ''carreaux'' and a tombstone.<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> Actes du colloque international de La Ferté-sous-Jouarre, {{p.|283}}</ref>

Various texts provide clues to the manufacture of millstones in the 17th century. On March 10, 1647, Jacques Vinault "''sold 3 rounds<ref>This term should be understood as a unit of volume</ref> of grinding stone''" to Pierre Bailly. On March 26, 1652, another text evokes the difficulties of a millstone assembly site, with a "''lack of wood to cook the plastre quy is not in sufficient quantity to plastrer and put in the places where it is necessary, joinct aussy that there is stone to suffice to make the millstones''". On July 7, 1680, Sr Delugré "''made a deal with Claude Duvau and Jullien Boullmer, stone molders [...] to supply them with 2 molds of molding stone and plaster to make the millstones [...] made and perfect to make flour''".<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> Actes du colloque international de La Ferté-sous-Jouarre, {{p.|298}}</ref>

According to Dorothée Kleinmann, "economic milling" and its improvements really took off at the end of the 18th century. This led to the development of stone quarrying and millstone production in new regions such as [[Cinq-Mars-la-Pile]] and [[Domme, Dordogne|Domme]], where "''millstones are always formed by joining several pieces together; there are no blocks large enough to make masses from a single piece''".<ref>Ours Pierre Armand Dufrénoy, 1834</ref> In these locations, it seems that at the beginning of the eighteenth century, millstone was not yet quarried, preferring to salvage scattered blocks from woods, fields and vineyards, which sometimes considerably increased their value.
[[File:Carriers2.jpg|left|thumb|Millstone production workshop in [[Épernon]]]]
Once the millstone blocks have been transported to the site and "peeled", the manufacturer selects the stones required for the millstone. The different pieces are classified according to their quality, taking into account hardness, grain, porosity, and color. At this stage, it is also necessary to take into account the milling system used in the country of dispatch, and the type of wheat produced in the region.<ref><sup>(fr)</sup> [http://www.la-ferte-sous-jouarre.org/patrimoine/article.php3?id_article=13 Patrimoine meulier] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090112193430/http://www.la-ferte-sous-jouarre.org/patrimoine/article.php3?id_article=13 |date=12 January 2009 }}</ref> Once the choice has been made, production begins with the center or "boitard", which is usually made in one piece. This must be very solid, especially for the current millstone, as it is at this level that the casing on which the millstone is suspended is fixed. Around the boitard, the tiles are arranged and fixed with plaster or cement, and chiseled to fit together sufficiently. A wheel of this type is generally made up of two to six quarters. "''When the job is done and the blocks match, the worker adjusts them by cementing them with [[Portland cement]], sometimes with a paste of [[Marl|Spanish white]] and oil that hardens with age, and clamps the whole with iron hoops''". On the other side of the working surface, the back of the millstone, or "counter-molding", is surrounded by a strip of sheet metal serving as temporary formwork. To give the millstone the necessary weight and thickness, it is reloaded with small stones embedded in fine [[concrete]], into which are inserted cast-iron balancing boxes, which may contain [[lead]] if necessary.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}

==== Edge mill ====
{{Main articles|Edge mill}}
Horizontal use of the millstone is generally associated with milling. When the millstone is "upright", i.e. on its edge, it is used for grinding, crushing, or milling operations. In this configuration, the nether millstone is fixed by its eyebolt to a vertical [[Mast (sailing)|mast]] located centrally on the nether millstone which acts as a pivot. Depending on the size of the installation, and to maintain the verticality of the mast, its upper part may be attached to a beam overhanging the mill. The current millstone is rotated either " by means of force", or more often, in a [[riding hall]]. In this way, the mill is driven by a double movement, turning on itself while pivoting around the mast, as in the Roman trapetum. In this type of device, the millstone is monolithic or made up of a paved or even masonry surface. Depending on the product to be processed, the millstone may be slightly concave, with a rim around the periphery to avoid dispersing the crushed material.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}
<gallery mode="packed-overlay" heights="200" widths="250">
File:Olive_press_0723.jpg|Olive mill - [[Nazareth]]. The ''spar'' through the ''eyelet'' is held in place by a [[dowel]] and is used to turn the current millstone.
File:High_Atlas-The_olive_grinding_mill_(js).jpg|Olive mill. [[High Atlas]]
File:Tou_d'preinseu,_Jèrri.jpg|"Apple lathe" driven by a horse. Ring-shaped trough serving as a lying millstone. The Elms, [[Jersey]]
File:Korean.Folk.Village-Minsokchon-10.jpg|Animal-drawn millstone. [[Korea]]
File:Chocolaterie-nestlé-broc_mélangeur_fève_de_cacao-ancien-3.jpg|Old Millstone equipped with [[windrow]] [[Plough|ploughs]], used to grind cocoa beans
File:Agris1.1.JPG|Millstone and [[riding hall]] - Agris (Charente)
File:Crocq08.JPG|Millstone and oil press - [[Crocq]] ([[Creuse]])
File:Almazara_2010.JPG|Olive mill with four conical millstones (Spain)
</gallery>