Mumat – Museum of Textile Machinery

The Mumat museum of textile machinery 20km north of Prato in Tuscany occupies a factory for recycling used woollen cloth, built in 1893 by Amerigo Meucci. Wool recycling techniques were invented in England but developed around Prato during the 19th century: regenerated wool became known as ‘Prato wool’. Rags were sorted by fibre and colour and put in tanks of water to be torn apart by spiked rollers. They were then cleaned of impurities by treatment with acid. The Meucci factory generated power with a turbine on the river Bisenzio and was enlarged to include a spinning mill and a dyeing plant. It closed in 1988 but the buildings were bought by the municipality and the museum opened in 2008. It shows equipment from the 19th century onwards, including a handloom, a wet-recycling machine, a carding machine and the turbine and electrical equipment. Recycling continues in the region and the museum works with local companies and the Textile Museum of Prato.