Montuiri, the quiet Mallorca

General data of Montuiri

Montuiri is a village and municipality of Mallorca. The extension of the municipality is of 41km2 in which there are about 3.100 inhabitants.

Located about 30 kilometers from the capital of Mallorca, it is linked to it through the road that runs between Palma and Manacor, one of the main communication routes of the island.

Originally surrounded by wetlands, which were drained to give an agricultural use to the land where they were located, the village stands on a mound of 170 meters that places it in a predominant situation to see any movement that takes place in the vicinity.

The etymology of Montuiri leads us to what was the original name of the area during the Roman occupation: Montuariu (mound). The use of the toponym by the Mozarabic inhabitants made it derive to Muntueri or Montueri, form that gave way to the current name.

Like other municipalities in the Pla de Mallorca, Montuiri has human settlements from the Bronze Age, which we will refer to later. It was not until the arrival of the Christian troops that the settlement became permanent and was documented (1329).

What Montuiri is known for

One of the details that best define Montuiri is the silhouette of its flour mills. Eight mills are still standing, although none of them are in use today.

Most of these mills are original from the 17th century and were active until the 20th century, some of them working until 1920. As they were replaced by electric machinery, their conservation conditions worsened notably, some of them even disappearing.

It was at the end of the 20th century and beginning of the 21st century when the Consell de Mallorca, together with the town council, initiated a recovery campaign that returned to these mills the lost and/or deteriorated elements that allowed them to recover their original appearance.