River Pivka Ponor and Modrijan Homestead

Find out what a typical miller's day was like from early morning to late afternoon, learn how wheat is turned into precious flour and how the so-called venecijanka saw works.

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Millers' Tradition

The Modrijan Homestead lies in the very heart of the Postojna Cave Park, just before the river Pivka ponor. During your visit, you can see the Lower Mill, a residential building and the so-called venecijanka – a water-driven saw. The Modrijan Mill (or the Lower Mill) on the Pivka, whose water wheels have been going round in this very spot for five centuries, is considered to be a true ethnological pearl. Electricity has been used to set up a mechanism that propels the millstone.

Modrijan Mill

The mill's interior with a centuries-old tradition presents millers' work (the year 1593 and the initials W. H., belonging to the mill's former owner, Wolfgang Huber, are carved in the stone door frame of the house). The mill building houses an occasional exhibition About Mills and Millers, where you can learn all sorts of interesting facts about mills on the river Pivka and millers’ life.

Slovenian Cuisine and Grilled Dishes

The Modrijan Homestead’s ground floor houses a restaurant that serves Slovenian cuisine and the shaded garden is a perfect place to enjoy some grilled dishes. You can enjoy lunch with fresh-baked artisanal bread, tasty prosciutto, cheese and a glass of wine. Visitors with a sweet tooth can indulge in the traditional Slovenian layer cake – gibanica and the ever-popular cream-and-custard cake.

Visit the Modrijan Homestead

The Modrijan Homestead is open from April to September. Tours are available by prior arrangement.