Minister Schüle promotes visit / State supports mill association with 85,000 euros
The 33rd German Mill Day will take place on Whit Monday. Around 650 mills across Germany will open their doors on this day. In Brandenburg, 63 of the more than 1,000 mills at 62 locations will be inviting visitors to discover them, including 20 watermills, 18 post windmills, six Dutch windmills, 14 motorised mills, four paltrock windmills and one barn windmill.
Minister of Culture Dr. Manja Schüle: "Whether paper or grain mills, wind or water mills, saw or powder mills - our Brandenburg mills are not only beautiful to look at, they are part of our identity, a piece of our homeland, cultural heritage you can touch. In the past, the miller's work ensured the survival of the population - today, many associations, support groups, volunteers and the Berlin-Brandenburg Mill Association ensure the preservation of the mills with passion and understanding. The meteorologists have forecast more sun than wind for Whit Monday: "But something always turns."
The German Mill Day was launched in 1994 by the German Society for Mill Science and Mill Preservation in order to protect the cultural heritage of the mill and keep the miller's craft alive. The "craft of milling in wind or water mills" has been on the nationwide list of intangible cultural heritage since 2018. The day of action is organised almost exclusively on a voluntary basis by associations and private mill owners. The state associations coordinate the activities of the mill owners and associations. This year, Mill Day will be officially opened at the windmill tower in Bad Nauheim, Hesse.
Founded in 1990, the Mühlenvereinigung Berlin-Brandenburg e.V. is an association of owners and operators of historic mills. The association is dedicated to the preservation and utilisation of mills, as well as supporting their restoration and operation. It also offers expert advice, looks after the cultural landscape around the mills, maintains an extensive mill archive and publishes publications. The Ministry of Culture has been funding the work of the Mill Association with 85,000 euros annually since 2019.
Further information can be found at www.muehlen-in-brandenburg.de.
