ABSTRACT

Persian windmills are usually referred to as the earliest windmills in the history of technology. These windmills, well-known for their vertical axle design, are distributed over the Irano-Afghan borderland. This multidisciplinary investigation on windmills and their millstones from eastern Iran shows that there are various types of Persian windmills, despite their similar features. Four clusters of windmills exist in different regions of eastern Iran, distinctive in their construction, mechanical system, and types of their millstones. Three groups from the semi-highland of eastern Iran used natural rocks for their millstone, whereas the fourth group in the lowland applied artificial millstones made by a complex pyrotechnolgy. Functional windmills have been present only in the semi-highland but have not been reported from the lowland since the beginning of the last century. This article sheds light on technical details and the history of this earliest known type of windmill and helps their restoration process by providing an appropriate typology.

摘要

波斯风车通常被称为科技史上最早的风车。这些风车以其垂直轴设计而闻名，分布在伊朗-阿富汗边境。这项对来自伊朗东部的风车及其磨石的多学科调查表明，尽管具有相似的特征，但仍有各种类型的波斯风车。伊朗东部的不同地区存在四组风车，它们的结构、机械系统和磨石类型各不相同。来自伊朗东部半高地的三个小组使用天然岩石作为他们的磨石，而低地的第四个小组则使用由复杂的烟火制成的人造磨石。自上世纪初以来，功能性风车仅在半高地出现，而在低地尚未见报道。本文阐明了这种已知最早的风车类型的技术细节和历史，并通过提供适当的类型来帮助其修复过程。