Le voci della pesca del pescespada a Messina

Abstract

For two thousand years, three methods of catching swordfish have coexisted in the Strait of Messina: harpoons, lines and nets. Over time, and up to the present day, we have seen these fishing methods develop in relation to the adaptation of the method of capture to the different shape of the coastline and the need to make fishing more productive. Until the 1950s, swordfish fishing in the Strait of Messina was still carried out according to methods handed down from ancient times, based on a system of shouting calls to indicate the position of the fish and then chasing it until it was caught. This essay re-examines the evidence contained in historical sources in the light of a survey carried out in Messina among the last ‘traditional’ fishermen.