Permanent exhibition of the Oliwa Hammer Forge

The Oliwa Hammer Forge is a monument of old technology, the only one of its kind still preserved today. It is the largest and longest-operating of the Oliwa hammer mills. It functioned for about 350 years using the power of the dammed up waters of Gdańsk's Oliwa Stream.

From the end of the 12th century, there were around 25 mills on the Oliwa Stream. They milled grain, produced paper and also pierced metals from which blacksmiths made everyday objects. The Water Forge, which has been a branch of the Gdansk Museum since 2018, was first mentioned in written sources in 1597. It operated until 1948. It is located at 1 Bytowska Street, surrounded by the Tri-City Landscape Park.

The wooden building consists of two parts built on both sides of the Oliwa Stream and a covered platform. The Water Forge houses three historic water wheels. Two with a diameter of 4 m drive quarter-ton hammers, the third with a diameter of 3.1 m drives an eccentric shear - a guillotine. The design of the hammers dates from the second half of the 19th century or early 20th century. Both workshops have unusual furnaces—hearths of ancient origin. They most likely converted Swedish osmund into Danzig iron bars.