The Watermills of Bulla

The Watermills of Bulla. . Historical documents going back to 1288 already testify to the existence of various farms in Bulla. The farming community of those days definitely recognized the importance of hydraulic energy to grind grain. In fact, an entry in the land registry of the municipality of Castelrotto of 1554 confirms this. , The mills were used privately as well as by by the whole community. Farmers could grind their grain at a specified time, but in exchange were also responsible for the maintenance and care of the mills. Today, in the Bulla valley there are three mills that have remained intact: Droch, Rumanon and Zaramin. Particularly skilled craftsmen from the village built all the various components of the mills with there own hands. Only the millstones came from Sesto in the Val Pusteria, because Sesto stone given its combination of slate and quartz was sufficiently hard and therefore suitable. , The water channeled to a wooden mill wheel set in motion and the kinetic energy produced caused the grinding stone to start work. In this way barley, rye, wheat and some oats were processed into meal and flour. Unfortunately, in the 1970s this milling activity was completely abandoned. On the initiative of the local nature and heritage association, "Lia per Natura y Usanzes", the mills have been expertly renovated in recent years and as a result of this intervention their existence has been preserved for all time. , Texts in German, Italian and Ladin, the local language of Val Gardena, also appears on this marker.