A field mill, also known as a camp mill, was a premodern vehicle which acted as a mobile

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Textile mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic unit of the Analytical Engine early ...

used for grinding grains, which had the very practical use of feeding a moving army.

History

Later Zhao

In the ''Yezhongji'' (鄴中記) ('Record of Affairs at the Capital of the Later Zhao Dynasty') by Lu Hui, covering the history of the

Later Zhao The Later Zhao (; 319–351) was a dynasty of the Sixteen Kingdoms in northern China. It was founded by the Shi family of the Jie ethnicity. The Jie were most likely a Yeniseian people and spoke next to Chinese one of the Yeniseian languages.Vo ...

(319–351 AD) court in China, the text describes various mechanical devices used, including the wheeled

odometer An odometer or odograph is an instrument used for measuring the distance traveled by a vehicle, such as a bicycle or car. The device may be electronic, mechanical, or a combination of the two ( electromechanical). The noun derives from ancient G ...

for measuring distance and the

south-pointing chariot The south-pointing chariot (or carriage) was an ancient Chinese two-wheeled vehicle that carried a movable pointer to indicate the south, no matter how the chariot turned. Usually, the pointer took the form of a doll or figure with an outstretch ...

for indicating

cardinal direction The four cardinal directions, or cardinal points, are the four main compass directions: north, east, south, and west, commonly denoted by their initials N, E, S, and W respectively. Relative to north, the directions east, south, and west are ...

.Needham, Volume 4, Part 2, 256. Two engineers in particular, the Palace Officer Xie Fei and Director of Imperial Workshops Wei Mengbian,Needham, Volume 4, Part 2, 257. were known for their designs and worked at the court of

Shi Hu Shi Hu (; 295–349), courtesy name Jilong (季龍), formally Emperor Wu of (Later) Zhao ((後)趙武帝), was an emperor of the Jie-led Chinese Later Zhao dynasty. He was the founding emperor Shi Le's distant nephew, who took power in a coup ...

(r. 334–349). The two had crafted a four-wheeled carriage about 6 m (20 ft) long with water-spouting dragons hanging over a large golden

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

statue that had a mechanical wooden statue of a

Daoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Tao ...

continually rubbing his front.Needham, Volume 4, Part 2, 159. Other mechanical figures included ten Daoists dressed in monastic robes who continually rotated around the Buddha while periodically bowing, saluting, and throwing

incense Incense is aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also b ...

into a

censer A censer, incense burner, perfume burner or pastille burner is a vessel made for burning incense or perfume in some solid form. They vary greatly in size, form, and material of construction, and have been in use since ancient times throughout t ...

. All of these mechanical figures were driven only by the movement of the carriage; once the carriage halted, the figures stopped moving and the water stopped spouting from the artificial dragons. Xie and Wei created a similar device operated by wheel motion called the field mill, although it served a more practical purpose than the theatrical display of moving statues and water-spouting dragons. The ''Yezhongji'' states that the two devised a "pounding cart" or "pounding wagon" which had figurine statues armed with real tilt hammers who pounded and

hulled Husk (or hull) in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. In the United States, the term husk often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize (corn) as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective ...

rice only when the cart moved. In addition to this they had a "mill cart" (field mill or camp mill) which had rotating

millstone Millstones or mill stones are stones used in gristmills, for grinding wheat or other grains. They are sometimes referred to as grindstones or grinding stones. Millstones come in pairs: a wikt:convex, convex stationary base known as the ''be ...

s mounted on their frames, which would rotate and grind wheat as the cart moved forward. Just like the carriage with mechanical figures mentioned above, when the carriage stopped, the devices associated with them halted.

Europe

Use of the field mill in China seems to have died out in use after the Later Zhao, since it was no longer mentioned in Chinese texts until

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

.Needham, Volume 4, Part 2, 255 & 257. The

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

military engineer Pompeo Targone, who was most notably involved in the Siege of La Rochelle (1627-1628) in western

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, invented the field mill in Europe by 1580.Needham, Volume 4, Part 2, 255. As shown in the Italian Vittorio Zonca's engineering treatise of 1607, two mills mounted to a wagon are rotated by a horse whim and gearing while in a stationary position at military camp or near billets. In the '' Yuanxi Qiqi Tushuo Luzui'' ('Collected Diagrams and Explanations of the Wonderful Machines of the Far West') compiled and translated in 1627 by

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

Johann Schreck Johann(es) Schreck, also Terrenz or Terrentius Constantiensis, Deng Yuhan Hanpo 鄧玉函, Deng Zhen Lohan, (1576, Bingen, Baden-Württemberg or Constance – 11 May 1630, Beijing) was a German Jesuit, missionary to China and polymath. He is ...

(1576–1630) and Ming Dynasty Chinese author Wang Zheng (王徵 1571–1644), a field mill is shown amongst other devices. In this picture, two mills are operated by the gearing of a rotating bar and a whippletree harnessed to a single horse, unlike the two horses seen in Zonca's illustration.Needham, Volume 4, Part 2, 255–256.

Notes

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References

*Needham, Joseph. (1986). ''Science and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Part 2, Mechanical Engineering''. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd.

External links