Vodní mlýn (Nové Město na Moravě) Water mill

Welcome to Petrovice, New Town, Moravia. Stop for a moment, take a breath and feel the surroundings. You're standing right in front of the Water Mill, a place where the rhythm of nature has been blended with human labor for centuries. Look at this area in front of you. The dominant is the mill itself, but your attention should also be paid to the surrounding economic structures and the self-standing object of the saw, which complements the overall picture of this historical whole. All this makes sense to the river Bobrovka, whose current was the main force that powered this machine and which still determines the atmosphere of the whole place. It's a space where water, wood and stone tell the story of how the past lived and worked on the Moravian landscape.

Now let's look deeper into the past together to understand how they got to this place. Imagine we're going back more than 500 years in time. Probably by 1450 the first mill activity was established here. At that time, in the first half of the 15th century, the mill was the key point of every village. It was the center of economic activity, the place where people around here brought their cereals to turn them into flour. It's fascinating to think that even then, in the late Middle Ages, people used the power of the Bobrose River in this very place. However, the mill was not a static construction. It gradually evolved, grew and adapted to new needs. He gained his present appearance at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries. It was during this period that the mill went through a fundamental transformation that gave it the character that you see today.

Now pay attention to the architecture and details surrounding you. A baroque-style object stands before you. The Baroque has brought some monumentality and playfulness to architecture, which can also be seen in the overall layout of this complex. If you look closely at the construction of the mill and its rover, you will be transferred in your mind to the end of the seventeenth century. It was at this time that a construction was built, which still holds the whole roof and protects the inner spaces. Notice how the organic mill fits into the landscape. The whole area is not just about one building, but about the interaction of several objects. In addition to the main mill, you can see economic buildings that were used to store grains, tools or accommodation. And then there's the solitary saw. Its separate location was not random, but practical, so that wood and sawmill dust were mixed with flour only minimally. Look at the facade and see how these buildings communicate with each other and form a closed workpiece.

Although today we do not know the names of the particular architects who raised these walls or the personalities who lived here over the centuries, we can try to imagine the life of the mill maker. He was a man who had to understand not only the technique of grinding, but above all the behaviour of the water. He must have known when Bobrose was flowing heavily and when to spare her strength. Life in the mill was filled with the constant noise of the bubbling water, the roaring of the mill stones and the smell of fresh grain. It was life in the rhythm of the seasons, from spring thaw to winter frost, which could stop the stream of water and with it all work.

If we move forward in time, we'll find an interesting technical breakthrough. Although the mill seems very ancient, he too had to keep up with the times. There was a major modernization in 1930. The Francis turbine was put into operation, supplied by Union from České Budějovice. Imagine the contrast. Old Baroque walls from the seventeenth century and inside them a modern machine from the twentieth century, which was able to use water energy much more efficiently. This turbine was a symbol of transition from traditional craft to industrial efficiency. It was a time when the mill tried to remain competitive in a rapidly changing world.

However, this mill in Petrovice also has its legal and protective history, which tells us how we saw monuments at different times. In 1958 the mill was officially included in the list of protected cultural monuments of the Czech Republic. This was the moment of recognition of its historical, architectural and technical value. The state said by this step that this place is an important testament to our past and must be preserved for future generations. This protection lasted until 1987. It is interesting how priorities have changed over the years and how the view of what is a real monument has changed.

The end of an era came in 1980. It was this year that the mill definitely ceased operation. The mill wheels stopped, the turbine went silent and the house stopped performing its primary function. Since then the mill no longer has any grain, but began to milk something else, namely memories and history. You are therefore standing here in front of a silent witness to the past, who no longer works, but still tells his story to anyone who stops and listens.

Now try to imagine what this place would look like if it was still busy. Do you hear the noise of Bobrose in the distance? That's the same water that powered the mill in 1450, 1600, and 1930. It's the only element that remains essentially immutable. It is in this contrast between the constantly flowing water and the still stone walls that lies the mystery and magic of this place.

Now, I invite you to walk quietly around the entire campus. Walk around the farm buildings, stop by the saw and look again at the main mill building. Feel the atmosphere of this forgotten corner where time has stopped. Try to imagine all the people who walked through here and all the bags of flour that were leaving here to the surrounding villages.

Thank you for accompanying me on this short trip to the history of the Water Mill in Petrovice. I hope you've found some peace and quiet, and that this baroque jewel on the river Bobrovoc has taken your interest. I wish you a pleasant continuation in your discovery of the beauty of New Town in Moravia and its surroundings. Goodbye.