in Places & People

The Lost Fishing Culture of the 1950s Portugal Through Fascinating Historical Photos

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Since Roman times, Portugal’s coast has been devoted to fishing, when the region exported its prized fish sauce garum to the capital. Garum (fermented fish sauce) from Lusitania (modern-day Portugal) was highly prized in Rome, and it came directly from the harbor of Lacobriga (current-day Lagos). The region’s fishing and fish processing industries were so crucial that the ruins of a former Roman garum factory can be seen in Lisbon’s old quarter. Men wearing checkered shirts and long wool hats fished from 15-foot open boats called saveiros, using spotlights and bait to attract schools of mackerel and horse mackerel into immense seine nets. Women processed and sold fish on the shore while the men were at sea. Traditional and obsolete fishing gear uses a seine net launched between two boats, a saveiro and another open boat. This gear uses a spotlight and sardine bait to catch mackerel and horse mackerel.

These photographs from the Gulbenkian Art Library show men and women repairing nets, hauling in boats, and selling their catch in Lisbon and nearby Ericeira and Nazaré. An artistic representation of a lost way of life along the Iberian coast.

#1 Portugeuse fishermen in traditional checks having a siesta underneath their nets on the beach at Nazare, 80 miles north of Lisbon, 1958

Portugeuse fishermen in traditional checks having a siesta underneath their nets on the beach at Nazare, 80 miles north of Lisbon, 1958

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#3 Launching of a fishing boat on a beach near Nazaré, Portugal, 1956

Launching of a fishing boat on a beach near Nazaré, Portugal, 1956

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#4 Construction of a fishing boat in Portugal a beach near Nazaré, Portugal, 1956.

Construction of a fishing boat in Portugal a beach near Nazaré, Portugal, 1956.

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#5 Fishing boats on a beach in the Nazaré region, 1956

Fishing boats on a beach in the Nazaré region, 1956

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#6 Fishing Boat Set Into Water On The Seashore Near Nazare, 1956

Fishing Boat Set Into Water On The Seashore Near Nazare, 1956

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#7 Fishermen with their boats on the beach at Nazare, Portugal, 1952.

Fishermen with their boats on the beach at Nazare, Portugal, 1952.

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#8 Portuguese fishermen prepare their nets on the beach at Nazare, Portugal, 1955.

Portuguese fishermen prepare their nets on the beach at Nazare, Portugal, 1955.

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#9 Portuguese fishermen prepare their nets on the beach at Nazare, 1955.

Portuguese fishermen prepare their nets on the beach at Nazare, 1955.

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#10 A woman helps to pull in the fishing boats at Peniche, Portugal.

A woman helps to pull in the fishing boats at Peniche, Portugal.

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#11 Portuguese fisherwomen, known as ‘varinas’, walk along the docks on the Tejo River carrying empty baskets which they use to take fish to market, 1955

Portuguese fisherwomen, known as 'varinas', walk along the docks on the Tejo River carrying empty baskets which they use to take fish to market, 1955

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#13 A woman washes clothing in a wooden container in a Portuguese fishing village.

A woman washes clothing in a wooden container in a Portuguese fishing village.

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#14 A woman in a Portuguese fishing village hangs out a dress to dry while her neighbours watch.

A woman in a Portuguese fishing village hangs out a dress to dry while her neighbours watch.

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#15 British statesman Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965) paints the fishing village of Camara de Lobos, during a holiday in Madeira, 9th January 1950.

British statesman Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) paints the fishing village of Camara de Lobos, during a holiday in Madeira, 9th January 1950.

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#16 A view as fishermen layout their nets on the beach in Nazare, Portugal.

A view as fishermen layout their nets on the beach in Nazare, Portugal.

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#17 A fishmonger carries her wares, a crate of small sharks, on her head as she walks along the quays of the Tagus River in Lisbon, 1950

A fishmonger carries her wares, a crate of small sharks, on her head as she walks along the quays of the Tagus River in Lisbon, 1950

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#18 Two fishermen from Nazare in Portugal prepare for the day’s fishing.

Two fishermen from Nazare in Portugal prepare for the day's fishing.

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#19 Women carrying fish walk across the drying fishing nets on the beach at Nazare.

Women carrying fish walk across the drying fishing nets on the beach at Nazare.

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#20 Women carrying fish in baskets on the beach at Nazare.

Women carrying fish in baskets on the beach at Nazare.

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#21 Fishermen driving their oxen forward to pull their fishing boats out of the water, in the town of Nazare 85 miles north of Lisbon.

Fishermen driving their oxen forward to pull their fishing boats out of the water, in the town of Nazare 85 miles north of Lisbon.

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#23 Lobster pots stacked up on the quayside at Cascais, 1957

Lobster pots stacked up on the quayside at Cascais, 1957

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#25 Fishermen pulling their boat up the beach at Nazare, Portugal, 1952.

Fishermen pulling their boat up the beach at Nazare, Portugal, 1952.

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#26 Women pulling in fishing boats at Nazare, Portugal.

Women pulling in fishing boats at Nazare, Portugal.

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#27 Portuguese fishermen relax on the beach at Nazare, 1952

Portuguese fishermen relax on the beach at Nazare, 1952

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#28 Portuguese fishermen relax near their traditional fishing boats on a beach near Lisbon.

Portuguese fishermen relax near their traditional fishing boats on a beach near Lisbon.

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#29 A line of men prepare to haul in the tunny net, and when the fish are brought to the surface they are hooked and and gaffed.

A line of men prepare to haul in the tunny net, and when the fish are brought to the surface they are hooked and and gaffed.

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#30 A fisherman and woman sell fresh fish from their boat in Nazare, a Portuguese fishing village.

A fisherman and woman sell fresh fish from their boat in Nazare, a Portuguese fishing village.

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#33 A girl carrying two animal skins full of water in the Portuguese fishing village of Nazare.

A girl carrying two animal skins full of water in the Portuguese fishing village of Nazare.

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2 Comments

  1. Not all of them are lost, but they are dying. If you go to the beaches of Pedrogão and Vieira you can still find fisherman that use the “Arte Xávega”. Today, it’s mostly a tourist attraction. Moreover, some of the photos from Nazaré appear to have been taken recently

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  2. It looks beautiful in the photographs but the reality is totally different. The harshness of the work, low wages, and the lives that the sea invariably took, made the living of those poor people a little hell. Therefore, let us stay with the memories, in the hope that the times to come will not take us again to whole lives of misery, where the human condition spills over into suffering and pain.

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