Himriksmole

The Himriksmole, also known as Groene Ster after the recreational area and nature reserve where it is located, is a drainage mill near the village of Tytsjerk, Friesland, Netherlands. It is a hollow post windmill of the type called spinnenkop by the Dutch. The mill is listed as a Rijksmonument, number 35675, and is used to raise the water level in the nature reserve.[1][2]

Himriksmole
Himriksmole in 2008
Origin
Mill nameHimriksmole
Mill locationRecreational area between Leeuwarden and Tytsjerk
Coordinates53°12′43″N 5°53′7″E
Operator(s)Gemeente Leeuwarden
Year builtca 1860, rebuild 1996
Information
PurposeDrainage mill
TypeHollow post
Roundhouse storeysSingle storey roundhouse
No. of sailsFour sails
Type of sailsCommon sails
WindshaftWood
WindingTailpole and winch
Type of pumpArchimedes' screw

History

The mill was originally built for draining the Hemrikspolder near Huizum, with parts of an 18th-century mill from Wergea being used in its construction. It was replaced by an electric pumping station and moved in 1952 to Rijperkerk and in 1977 to its current location, where it was put to a new use, supplying water to the nature reserve.[3] The mill was destroyed by arson in 1995 but rebuilt the following year.[2]

Description

The Himriksmole is what the Dutch describe as a spinnenkop (English: spiderhead mill). It is a small hollow post mill wound by a winch. The four common sails have a span of 11 metres (36 ft 1 in) and are carried on a cast-iron windshaft. The brake wheel on the windshaft drives the wallower at the top of the upright shaft in the body (on a spinnenkop called the head), which passes through the main post into the substructure. At the bottom of this shaft, a pair of crown wheels drive the scoop wheel axle. The scoop wheel itself is located outside the mill. The Himriksmole is the only drainage mill with a scoop wheel in Friesland; other Frisian drainage mills use an Archimedes' screw.[2] The head and substructure are weatherboarded.

Public access

The mill is easily reached from the public footpath running past the mill.

References
  1. "Molenbestand: De Himriksmole/De Groene Ster te Tytsjerk (Tietjerk)" (in Dutch). De Hollandsche Molen. Archived from the original on 2013-12-20.
  2. "Tytsjerk (Tietjerk), Fryslân" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Molendatabase. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  3. "Spinnekop Wielzicht komt in Groene Ster". Leeuwarder Courant (in Dutch). 1 April 1974.
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