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Wooden paddle from a mill wheel

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From Gutcher, Yell, Shetland

Wooden paddle from a mill wheel
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This wooden paddle from a mill wheel was found at Gutcher on Yell in Shetland. It was probably used on a horizontal water mill, sometime between 70 and 350 AD. The paddle was made from driftwood.

The well-preserved paddle has holes for attaching it to the central post. The wheel would have been set horizontally into the water, so that the running burn would push against the paddles.

Horizontal water mills, also called Norse or Highland mills, were simple mills used from an early period, lasting into the 20th century in the Northern and Western Isles. Although inefficient, they were quick and easy to build, requiring little wood.

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