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Waterwheels were everywhere that water was abundant.
The falling water turned the wheel, pounding the rice and barley.
The waterwheel was a symbol of rural areas. Rural towns with an abundant water supply had waterwheels for pounding and grinding grains. 'Mul-le-bang-a', the Korean word for waterwheel, is a compound word of 'mul-le', a spinning wheel, and 'bang-a', a mill. It is a device that pounds and grinds using the power of water. The falling water turns the wheel, and there is a pressing bar for one end of the mortar on each end of the axle that runs across the middle of the wheel. As the waterwheel turns, the pressing bar presses and lifts the mortar, pounding grains.The waterwheel turns with a creaking sound, and the droplets of water splashed from the turning wheel forms beautiful geometrical patterns. Many of the waterwheels still existing are made of metals, and are used for threshing and grinding of small amount of grains by transmitting power using many gears and belts inside the mill. The antique atmosphere of the rice mill with heavy snapping sounds bring up old memories.
