The Ancient Treadwheel Crane for Lifting Loads at Mont Saint-Michel Abbey

The image shows one of the most fascinating testimonies of daily life in the medieval abbey: the large treadwheel crane used to lift supplies and materials to the upper levels of the monastery. This ingenious mechanism, dating from the period when the abbey was transformed into a prison during the French Revolution, worked thanks to the strength of prisoners walking inside the wheel. The oak wood structure, with its ropes and gears, has been perfectly preserved and represents an extraordinary example of medieval engineering. The light filtering through the opening illuminates the construction details of this device that allowed to overcome the differences in level of the rock.

Mont Saint-Michel, treadwheel crane, medieval engineering, abbey, prison, lifting mechanism, oak wood