TIDE MILLS, SEA MILLS

[Marta Elena Díaz García]

Tide mills use the ebb and the flow of the tide to move their mechanism. They are usually located in arms of the sea where the conditions are adequate to build them: a) it is easy to close the cove with a dyke, b) are places in which the tides are noticeable and c) they are protected from open sea inclemency.

These mills are expensive and big buildings and, in spite their work depends on the tides rhythm, this drawback is compensated by the high number of millstones (usually four) and the advantage to work along all the year.

In bable these mills are named as “enciena” or “encieña” (in Spanish the name is “aceña”). In the western region of Asturias they are name as “as acías”, a Galician variant.

The asturian tide mills were localized in the estuaries of Eo, Navia, Avilés, Villaviciosa and Ribadesella, as well in a depression (dolina, in Spanish) near the village of Buelna (Council of Llanes). A brief comment about each follows.

As Acias. It was the tide mill in the estuary of Eo, close to the Figueres (Council of Castropol). Was built in 1747 by the family Pardo de Donlebún. This mill finished its activity in 1914.

La Enciena de Seloriu. Located in the estuary of Villaviciosa, near to Seloriu (Council of Villaviciosa). It was already mentioned in the Dictionary of Madoz (1845) and finished its work around 1920’s. It belonged to the Rivero family of Seloriu.

La Enciena de Tornón. This was the tide mill located just in the estuary of Villaviciosa. It is the best preserved sea mill of Asturias and also it is the latest. It was built in 1880 by Bernardo Llanos Alvarez de las Asturias and finished its activity aroun 1950’s. In 1902 the mill was sold to Ramón Rivas, a Gijón resident, who used it not as industrial business but as recreation place.

Molín de Marimuerto. This mill was located near the village of Buelna (Council of Llanes). It was localed inside a depression underground connected with the sea. Consequently, it filled and empty as a function of the tides.

Enceñas de Avilés. There are reported two sea mills in Avilés, both of them disappeared. The first one, Las Aceñas, was located just in the village of Avilés. Until the middle of the XIX century this sea mill separated the village of Avilés from the neighbourhood of Sabugo. In that time, the arm sea was dried and transformed in a plaza that, even today, is named as Las Aceñas.

The second one, la Enceña de la Pedrera (Council of Gozón) was located near the mouth of the Avilés estuary; in 1752 it was already ruined.

The picture shows the Enciena del Tornon in 1905 and after its rebuilding in 1920. Both from Arturo del Fresno.

[Art]

Thanks, Marta, that's interesting on many levels!! I've never heard of an “encieña.”

I saw a similar technology in Brasil, but on a much smaller scale. I believe it was a floating but tethered device used to capture the rise and fall of the water level. There are other designs, too: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/ind ... power_wave

[Marta Elena Díaz García]

Hi Art:

the new technology is quite interesting. However, it is also interesting that, with industrial aims, sea energy was used in Asturias by the XVIII century. It is a pity that such mills were lost.