Tat-Tmien Kantunieri Windmill

Tat-Tmien Kantunieri Windmill (Maltese: Il-Mitħna tat-Tmien Kantunieri) located in Xewkija, on the main road mid-way between Victoria and Għajnsielem stands as the oldest surviving windmill in Gozo, Malta. It is undergoing restoration after the Planning Commission had approved the works to start on this historic building.[1][2][3]

Tat-Tmien Kantunieri Windmill
Il-Mitħna Tat-Tmien Kantunieri
Xewkija Windmill, Il-Mitħna Tax-Xewkija
Alternative namesIl-Mitħna Ottagonali tax-Xewkija
General information
TypeWindmill
LocationGozo
AddressTriq Mgarr
Town or cityXewkija, Gozo
CountryMalta
Coordinates36°02′09.4″N 14°15′37.0″E
Opened1710
Closed1886

History

The Tat-Tmien Kantunieri Windmill was commissioned by Grand Master Ramon Perellos y Roccaful and started operating in 1710 by the miller Ganni Scicluna (Gio Maris Xicluna). Perellos has also made Giovanni Gourgion as the Procurator of Wheat, where Giovanni would receive a commission on all grain he brought to Malta. Gourgion has his residence, which later used to be known as the Gourgion Tower in Xewkija.[4][5]

The Windmill with Gozo Citadel in background

The windmill consists of a large entrance hall with two parallel rooms. At the back of the mill, there is a kitchen and building still retain its original oven. In the middle of the mill, there is a winding staircase leading to the mill roof. Above the entrance hall, there is the birth room.

The windmill remained in use until 1886 as a fire destroyed it.

Later in the mid of the 19th century, it was owned by the three Camilleri brothers.

The windmill served as the first location for the Xewkija Band Club – Banda Prekursur. It was used as the base of this club from 1956 to 1965.[6][7][8][1][2]

Currently the windmill is being restored. Some concrete elements that were added later during the years will be removed, and a small square nearby will be added. The mechanical parts will also be re-installed. [9]

About

The Miller

The miller would grind cereals and grains, with the help of a big rotating stone driven from the eight pointed fan like sails made from wood. When the wind blows from the required direction, the miller would call his customers by a trumpet shell (Maltese: Bronja), or otherwise he would also go with his cart to collect the grains. Before this type of mill has been built, the miller had to use a blindfolded mule or ass to turn a similar stone setup, usually in a stable. These mills are considered the first industrial machines on the Maltese islands.[10][11][12]

An interesting notary note dated 7th March 1851 was unearthed recently (2018). The note was made by Marcello Xicluna the leaseholder of the Windmill. He argued that in order to pay for the rent he had to sell various possessions he had. He asked for a reduction of his rent which was 550 scudi per annum. He had this lease from the government for the last 32 years. During that time people were constructing their 'centimolo' into their own property and thus they were milling their own corn, and were not making use of his mill. He brought other arguments too. The request was at the end refused.[13] [14] [15] [16]

Maltese windmills
See also: List of windmills in Malta

Malta has the biggest density of windmills in the world, which is 1 windmill every 9sq km. This surpasses the Netherlands, which has 1 windmill every 39sq km. In the Maltese Islands, 69 windmills are known to have been built, but only about 36 still exist today. 54 windmills were built in Malta and 15 in Gozo. Only 3 windmills have sails to date. Most windmills in Malta were built by the Knights of St. John after they came from Rhodes. In 1674, the Grand Master Nicolas Cotoner ordered the building of the first five mills, with other building orders followed after. The construction period for these windmills was between 1663 till 1773. The windmill builders were assisted by the experts brought up from Mallorca, Spain. Some windmills were also used for the production of gunpowder.[17] In 1838, the government ended the monopoly of windmills, thus everybody was allowed to build windmills. The windmills were later superseded by steam mills.[18][1][2]

gollark: And *this* is why you should ACTUALLY LEARN THINGS and not just copy-paste code.
gollark: If this computer is plugged into the reactor I can modify this to display actual data.
gollark: ```luawhile true do for i = 1, 5 do print("RF/t:", math.random(0, 100000)) print("Heat:", math.random(0, 100000)) os.sleep(30) end -- do stuff to clear screen hereend```
gollark: Because 2 lines per run.
gollark: You mean 10, right?

References
  1. Willem, Staat. "Malta has biggest density of windmills worldwide". Times of Malta. Times of Malta. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  2. Staat, Willem (July–August 2005). "Molens Malta" (PDF). Molen Wereld (in Dutch) (84): 256–264. ISSN 1387-2974. Retrieved 29 September 2018.CS1 maint: date format (link)
  3. Gauci, MGR. Dr. Anthony (1969). Gozo - A historical and tourist guide to the Island (2nd ed.). Hamrun, Malta: St. Joseph's Home Printing Press. p. 88.
  4. Azzopardi, Joe (October 2013). "The Gourgion Tower - Gone but not Forgotten (Part 1)" (PDF). Vigilo. Din l-Art Ħelwa (44): 45–47. ISSN 1026-132X. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 11, 2014.
  5. Azzopardi, Joe (May 2014). "The Gourgion Tower - Gone but not Forgotten (Part 2)" (PDF). Vigilo. Din l-Art Ħelwa (45): 44–47. ISSN 1026-132X. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 15, 2015.
  6. "Tat-Tmien Kantunieri Windmill". Windmills of Malta. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  7. "Information on Xewkija". My Guide Malta.
  8. Bezzina, Joseph (2004). "10 The Perellos octagonal windmill". Xewkija THE FIRST VILLAGE OF GOZO (1st ed.). Qala Malta: A+M Printing. pp. 49–50. ISBN 978-99909-57-23-5.
  9. "Unique Windmill in Xewkija to be restored". Maltese National TV Website.
  10. "Ta' Kola Windmill". Visit Gozo. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  11. Malta, Heritage (17 May 2016). "Ta' Kola Windmill". Malta Independent. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  12. Grima, John Paul (April 2015). Studju Lessikali tat-Taħditiet Djalettali li ġabru Aquilina u Isserlin (PDF). University of Malta.
  13. "WINDMILL IN XEWKIJA, GOZO by Vince Peresso". facebook. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  14. "Xewkija Windmill Notary Note Page 1". wikipedia. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  15. "Xewkija Windmill Notary Note Page 2". wikipedia. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  16. "Xewkija Windmill Notary Note Page 3". wikipedia. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  17. Mercieca, Simon; Muscat, Joseph (2013). "Windmills and the Production of Gunpowder in Malta". Symposia Melitensia (9): 2–18.
  18. "Unique Windmill in Xewkija to be restored". Maltese National TV Website.
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