The Danish Ungdomsmollen (Youth Mill)

[Tom Greensfelder]

I know it's been awhile since I've posted here, but since Miles was nice enough to wish me a Happy Birthday, I thought I would post the perfect birthday model for those of us who may have already had too many of them.

It's the Ungdomsmollen from the Illustreret-Familie Journal from the late 20s, early 30s. If you notice the clock on the front of the mill, the numbers run backwards. The text below the clock reads "The clock that can get time to go backwards.” On the right of the mill is a group of oldsters on their way in and on the left they've exited the mill now returned to their younger days.

Guess it's time for a trip to Denmark?

[Tom Greensfelder]

Here are the model sheets that make the mill.

[Mike Stamper]

I like the model and the time thing.

Let me know when you are off to Denmark and I'll join you ;-)

Cheers
Mike

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

And hi, Tom Greensfelder. Nicely built and colorful rejuvenation machine. I also like the silhouette wheels, escapement and chapter ring inside the base of the windmill. Once the model is built, the secret of rejuvenation remains forever unseen.

Can't go to Scandinavia right now, there are too many vintage paper models to build.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[Philip]

I like it, too. If only...

[Diderick A. den Bakker]

Lovely! I looked up the name: it is 'Mill of youth'. Perhaps based on some fairy tale? Hope someone knows.

There was a link on the forum recently to the Familienjournal archives. Heaps of aper models (on the last page of each installment), but impossible to download. Where did you find these?

[Kevin WS]

Curious little model.

Odd mill - both a wheel and wind? Artistic licence I guess!

Thanks for sharing - appreciated Tom.

And a great little build.

[SCEtoAUX]

Nice windmill model. The story behind it is amusing.:)

[Tom Greensfelder]

Glad you all like this curious paper model. The original is in my collection, Diderick. I just did my best with Google translate to translate the text on the opening page.

It reads: "Out of a place in the wide world, once there was an old miller who had constructed a peculiar clock, which could make time go backwards, and now the strange thing was that he could grind old people into young people in his mill. At first he let his clock work with the help of the windmill, but it did not really go, the wind did not allow him to control it, and the time became too irregular. The windmill was therefore allowed to fall in decay. But then he decided to build the clock with a waterwheel in the creek, and now time went quietly and right, that is to say, truly backwards, and people became young again without sudden jumps in the clockwork, and the word went far and wide about the remarkable youth mill."

So, now we have an explanation at last for the reason there's both a watermill and a windmill attached to the building. But if this is a true fairy tale, or just something made up by the editors at IFJ, who knows?

[Tom Greensfelder]

In case someone wants to try their hand at translating the text (any Danish speakers out there?), here it is:

Ude et Sted i den vide Verden boede der engang en gammel Møller, som havde konstrueret et ejendommeligt Ur, den kunde faa Tiden til at gaa baglæns, og der skete nu det mærkelige, at han kunde male gamle Mennesker om til unge i sin Mølle. Forst lod han sit Ur trække ved Hjælp af Vindmøllen, men det vilde ikke rigtig gaa, Blæsten lod sig ikke mestre, og Tiden blev for uregelmæssig. Vindmøllen fik derfor Lov til at forfalde. Men saa fandt han paa at bygge Uret sammen med et Strømhjul i Aaen, og nu gik Tiden rolig og rigtig, det vil altsaa sige rigtig baglæns, og Folk blev unge igen uden pludselige Spring i Urværket, og der gik Ry vidt og bredt om den mærkelige Ungdomsmølle.

[rockpaperscissor]

What a wonderful, whimsical model. You did a great job building it.

[Diderick A. den Bakker]

In case someone wants to try their hand at translating the text (any Danish speakers out there?), here it is:

Ude et Sted i den vide Verden boede der engang en gammel Møller, som havde konstrueret et ejendommeligt Ur, den kunde faa Tiden til at gaa baglæns, og ...

Thank you for that. As a language man, I always love to compare Scandinavian texts with other Germanic languages Dutch, German, English) and see the similarities!

And yes, I think it will turn out to be a made-up story. However, perhaps a Danish member of the forum may know more?

[AnneR]

Hello
"The Mill of Youth" is a declination of the Fountain of Youth. This them is born in the XVIe century.https://ibb.co/vD9Khfp"
Anne

[Diderick A. den Bakker]

It so happens that my two older brothers both have their birthdays (80 and 82) in the course of this month - so I built two copies. Scaled down to fit A4, easy to do, and the first one (yesterday) was a great success.