Millstones

About the sound

Millstones or mill stones are stones used in grist mills, for grinding wheat or other grains. Millstones come in pairs. The base or bedstone is stationary. Above the bedstone is the turning runner stone which actually does the grinding. The runner stone spins above the stationary bedstone creating the "scissoring" or grinding action of the stones. A runner stone is generally slightly concave, while the bedstone is slightly convex. This helps to channel the ground flour to the outer edges of the stones where it can be gathered up.
This watermill is placed in Röttle nearby Gränna in Sweden and it’s called Rasmus Kvarn. The mill was built in 1660, but back then it was used as a forge for weapons. In 1690 they rebuilt the house to a flour mill. The mill was used until 1923. 1979 the local Preservation society started to use the mill again and it has been used since then, mostly as a tourist attraction. Rasmus mill is a part of Grenna Museum.

Sound recordist: Torsten Nilsson
Photographer: Torsten Nilsson