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The Watermill at Opwetten (Dutch: ''Opwettense watermolen'') is a watermill along the river Kleine Dommel, located on the Opwettenseweg 203 in Opwetten, Nuenen, Gerwen en Nederwetten, in the province of North Brabant, Netherlands. First mentioned in the 11th century, the watermill burned down and was rebuilt in 1764. There have been several buildings in the watermill complex. One building was a gristmill and sawmill, while another functioned as oil mill and fulling mill. The mill operated two undershot water wheels, including the largest water wheel in the Netherlands. The gristmill is still in functioning order and is used on a small scale, the building of the former oil and fulling mill now houses a restaurant. A tannery was located in a building in the back and up to 1910 an inn was located in the miller's house. Vincent van Gogh lived nearby and made several paintings while in the area, including a painting of the mill in 1884. The watermill was listed as a national monument in 1972. == History == The gristmill was built in the early 11th century along the river Kleine Dommel, by monks of a Benedictine monastery in Sint-Truiden, Belgium. In the 14th century the mill was owned by the lords and ladies of the heerlijkheid Cuijk and Mierlo, and was a ''banmolen'' (nl), meaning peasants in the locality were obligated to use this mill to grind their wheat.〔〔 In 1664 the mill partially burned down. It was rebuilt and, in order to recover from the losses, the miller did not have to pay taxes for the next 15 years. In 1764 another fire destroyed the entire mill,〔〔 according to an ordenance from the States General after the miller requested assistance.〔 The mill was rebuilt with the addition of a second water wheel. The larger building was a gristmill and the smaller building an oil mill. In 1909 a sawmill was added to the larger building, and for a period the smaller building also acted as a fulling mill.〔 A plaque placed on the miller's house in 1973 to celebrate the 100th birthday of miller Gerardus van Hoorn commemorates both fires. Van Hoorn had known the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, who lived in nearby Nuenen from 1883 until 1885. Van Gogh painted several paintings around the mill, including an 1884 painting of the mill itself, ''Water Mill at Opwetten'' (F48). In a video interview in 1973, Van Hoorn said that he had seen Van Gogh paint and had supplied him with bird nests for his paintings.〔〔 The mill has had several names and during the first centuries it was known as the Saint Anthony Mill (Dutch: ''St. Antoniusmolen''), named after a nearby chapel dedicated to saint Anthony the Great. From 1726 until it came into the possession of Gerardus van Hoorn in 1916, the mill was known as Jan's Mill (Dutch: ''Jansmolen'').〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Watermill at Opwetten」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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