Falkuša
Encyclopedia
A falkusa is a traditional fishing boat used by fishermen from the town of Komiža
on the Adriatic
island of Vis
, Croatia
. Falkuša is a subtype of gajeta, a traditional Dalmatia
n fishing sailboat
, and is sometimes called gajeta falkuša (ˈɡajeta ˈfalkuʃa). Its design was adapted to specific needs of Komiža fishermen, who went to long fishing expeditions in the open seas, a unique practice in the Adriatic and Mediterranean
.
The Falkuša is a unique wooden boat, tapered narrowly on both sides, and is about seven to eight metres in length by 3 metres wide. It had a low draft
under a large (120 m² or 143.5 sq yd) lateen sail made from flax
, mounted on a mast
which was typically as high as the ship was long. It was very fast both under sail
and with oar
, able to achieve speeds between 8 to 12 knots. Its distinctive feature were two removable wooden side strake
s called falke, after which falkuša got its name. The strakes raised the rim of the boat by about half a metre, protecting it from high waves in the open seas. To ease the hauling of the net
s, the strakes were removed during fishing. The vessel could carry up to eight tonnes of salted fish barrels.
For its characteristics of toughness and strength, the traditional gajeta falkuša was made only with cypress
wood
from the volcanic island of Svetac
. The keel
was made of oak
and the shell of larch
.
A typical falkuša carried a crew of six men. There were five oars for standing oarsmen which were 7 to 9 meters in length. The fishermen used nets and a feral, a gas or petroleum lamp for attracting fish
. Fishing trips lasted 20 to 25 days, to make them financially viable. Duties such as cooking, washing, repairing, sailing between fishing posts and dealing with bad weather left only 10 to 12 days for actual fishing in a typical journey.
, approximately 42 NM to the south-southwest of Vis, which at times was used by fifty or more vessels. On the island there were provisional houses, which they used to store barrels of salted sardines and fishing equipment.
Fishermen of Komiža would hold an annual regatta
between Komiža and Palagruža, known as Rota Palagruzona ("Palagruža Route"), a trip which would take about 5 hours of sailing with a good wind, or 13 to 16 hours of rowing when wind conditions were poor. The outcome of the regatta was very important, because top finishers won the rights to the best fishing areas around Palagruža for the season, and the other places were taken in the order of arrival.
The first known regatta to Palagruža was held as far back as 1593 making it the oldest fishermen's regatta in Europe
. Komiža's fishermen met in May 1593 in the Lodge in the town of Hvar. There it was agreed that the race of 74 falkuša boats would start on June 12. To signal the start of the race a cannon shot would be fired from the newly built town fortress. The fishermen were accompanied by Venetian
war galleys in order to protect them from pirates.
With the advent of ship engines, the regatta lost its purpose, and its last edition was held in 1936. Falkuša was used well into the first half of the 20th century. The last gajeta falkuša of the island of Komiža, named Cicibela, was destroyed and sunk by a storm in the Bay of Porat (Biševo
island) in 1986. Today its remains are preserved in the Fishing Museum in Komiža.
-Lisbon
") was built in 1997 and exhibited at the 1998 World’s Fair
in Lisbon, Portugal
. The revival of falkuša attracted significant interest, and the boat became the subject of five documentary film
s and an award-winning radio drama
. In 1998 falkuša was put on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In 1999 under UNESCO
and with shipwrights documentation supplied by Velimir Salamon, a five-metre reduced-scale replica of the legendary falkuša was built. It was named Molo. It was built in Komiža and launched into the sea on Saint Nicholas Day (December 6). The secretary of the European Maritime Heritage, Thedo Fruithof from Amsterdam
was present at the launch. Second full-scale replica, named Mikula, was finished in 2005.
Komiža
Komiža is a town, harbour and municipality on the western coast of the island of Vis in the Adriatic Sea; population of 1677 residents.Komiža is located at the foot of the Hum hill . An average air temperature in January is . Economy is based on farming, winemaking, fishing and fish processing,...
on the Adriatic
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
island of Vis
Vis (island)
Vis is the most outerly lying larger Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea, and is part of the Central Dalmatian group of islands, with an area of 90.26 km² and a population of 3,617 . Of all the inhabited Croatian islands, it is the farthest from the coast...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. Falkuša is a subtype of gajeta, a traditional Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
n fishing sailboat
Sailboat
A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails. The term covers a variety of boats, larger than small vessels such as sailboards and smaller than sailing ships, but distinctions in the size are not strictly defined and what constitutes a sailing ship, sailboat, or a...
, and is sometimes called gajeta falkuša (ˈɡajeta ˈfalkuʃa). Its design was adapted to specific needs of Komiža fishermen, who went to long fishing expeditions in the open seas, a unique practice in the Adriatic and Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
.
Design and construction
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
under a large (120 m² or 143.5 sq yd) lateen sail made from flax
Flax
Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...
, mounted on a mast
Mast (sailing)
The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...
which was typically as high as the ship was long. It was very fast both under sail
Sail
A sail is any type of surface intended to move a vessel, vehicle or rotor by being placed in a wind—in essence a propulsion wing. Sails are used in sailing.-History of sails:...
and with oar
Oar
An oar is an implement used for water-borne propulsion. Oars have a flat blade at one end. Oarsmen grasp the oar at the other end. The difference between oars and paddles are that paddles are held by the paddler, and are not connected with the vessel. Oars generally are connected to the vessel by...
, able to achieve speeds between 8 to 12 knots. Its distinctive feature were two removable wooden side strake
Strake
A strake is part of the shell of the hull of a boat or ship which, in conjunction with the other strakes, keeps the sea out and the vessel afloat...
s called falke, after which falkuša got its name. The strakes raised the rim of the boat by about half a metre, protecting it from high waves in the open seas. To ease the hauling of the net
Fishing net
A fishing net or fishnet is a net that is used for fishing. Fishing nets are meshes usually formed by knotting a relatively thin thread. Modern nets are usually made of artificial polyamides like nylon, although nets of organic polyamides such as wool or silk thread were common until recently and...
s, the strakes were removed during fishing. The vessel could carry up to eight tonnes of salted fish barrels.
For its characteristics of toughness and strength, the traditional gajeta falkuša was made only with cypress
Cypress
Cypress is the name applied to many plants in the cypress family Cupressaceae, which is a conifer of northern temperate regions. Most cypress species are trees, while a few are shrubs...
wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
from the volcanic island of Svetac
Sveti Andrija (Vis)
Sveti Andrija , sometimes also called Svetac is an island in the Croatian part of the Adriatic Sea. It is situated from Komiža . It is uninhabited, although it used to have permanent residents. Remains of Byzantine origin can be found on the island...
. The keel
Keel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
was made of oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
and the shell of larch
Larch
Larches are conifers in the genus Larix, in the family Pinaceae. Growing from 15 to 50m tall, they are native to much of the cooler temperate northern hemisphere, on lowlands in the north and high on mountains further south...
.
A typical falkuša carried a crew of six men. There were five oars for standing oarsmen which were 7 to 9 meters in length. The fishermen used nets and a feral, a gas or petroleum lamp for attracting fish
Fishing light attractor
A fishing light attractor is a fishing aid which uses lights attached to structure above water or suspended underwater to attract both fish and members of their food chain to specific areas in order to harvest them.-Purpose:...
. Fishing trips lasted 20 to 25 days, to make them financially viable. Duties such as cooking, washing, repairing, sailing between fishing posts and dealing with bad weather left only 10 to 12 days for actual fishing in a typical journey.
Fishermen's regatta
The main fishing ground exploited by Komiža's fishermen was the island of PalagružaPalagruža
Palagruža is a small, remote archipelago of dolomite in the middle of the Adriatic Sea in Croatia. It consists of one main island, called Vela or Velika Palagruža, and one smaller one, Mala Palagruža, and there are twenty or so other closely associated rocks or reefs...
, approximately 42 NM to the south-southwest of Vis, which at times was used by fifty or more vessels. On the island there were provisional houses, which they used to store barrels of salted sardines and fishing equipment.
Fishermen of Komiža would hold an annual regatta
Regatta
A regatta is a series of boat races. The term typically describes racing events of rowed or sailed water craft, although some powerboat race series are also called regattas...
between Komiža and Palagruža, known as Rota Palagruzona ("Palagruža Route"), a trip which would take about 5 hours of sailing with a good wind, or 13 to 16 hours of rowing when wind conditions were poor. The outcome of the regatta was very important, because top finishers won the rights to the best fishing areas around Palagruža for the season, and the other places were taken in the order of arrival.
The first known regatta to Palagruža was held as far back as 1593 making it the oldest fishermen's regatta in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Komiža's fishermen met in May 1593 in the Lodge in the town of Hvar. There it was agreed that the race of 74 falkuša boats would start on June 12. To signal the start of the race a cannon shot would be fired from the newly built town fortress. The fishermen were accompanied by Venetian
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
war galleys in order to protect them from pirates.
With the advent of ship engines, the regatta lost its purpose, and its last edition was held in 1936. Falkuša was used well into the first half of the 20th century. The last gajeta falkuša of the island of Komiža, named Cicibela, was destroyed and sunk by a storm in the Bay of Porat (Biševo
Biševo
Biševo is an island in the Adriatic Sea in Croatia. It is situated in the middle of the Dalmatian archipelago, five kilometers southwest of the Island of Vis. Its area is 5.8 km and it has a population of 11 . It is composed of limestone; the highest point is Straženica, 239 m high...
island) in 1986. Today its remains are preserved in the Fishing Museum in Komiža.
Replicas
A replica of falkuša named Comeza-Lisboa ("KomižaKomiža
Komiža is a town, harbour and municipality on the western coast of the island of Vis in the Adriatic Sea; population of 1677 residents.Komiža is located at the foot of the Hum hill . An average air temperature in January is . Economy is based on farming, winemaking, fishing and fish processing,...
-Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
") was built in 1997 and exhibited at the 1998 World’s Fair
Expo '98
Expo '98 was an official specialised World's Fair held in Lisbon, Portugal from Friday, May 22 to Wednesday, September 30, 1998. The theme of the fair was "The Oceans, a Heritage for the Future," chosen in part to commemorate 500 years of Portuguese discoveries...
in Lisbon, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
. The revival of falkuša attracted significant interest, and the boat became the subject of five documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
s and an award-winning radio drama
Radio drama
Radio drama is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance, broadcast on radio or published on audio media, such as tape or CD. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story...
. In 1998 falkuša was put on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In 1999 under UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
and with shipwrights documentation supplied by Velimir Salamon, a five-metre reduced-scale replica of the legendary falkuša was built. It was named Molo. It was built in Komiža and launched into the sea on Saint Nicholas Day (December 6). The secretary of the European Maritime Heritage, Thedo Fruithof from Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
was present at the launch. Second full-scale replica, named Mikula, was finished in 2005.
See also
- Boat buildingBoat buildingBoat building, one of the oldest branches of engineering, is concerned with constructing the hulls of boats and, for sailboats, the masts, spars and rigging.-Parts:* Bow - the front and generally sharp end of the hull...
- Fishing vesselFishing vesselA fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Many different kinds of vessels are used in commercial, artisanal and recreational fishing....
- KomižaKomižaKomiža is a town, harbour and municipality on the western coast of the island of Vis in the Adriatic Sea; population of 1677 residents.Komiža is located at the foot of the Hum hill . An average air temperature in January is . Economy is based on farming, winemaking, fishing and fish processing,...
- PalagružaPalagružaPalagruža is a small, remote archipelago of dolomite in the middle of the Adriatic Sea in Croatia. It consists of one main island, called Vela or Velika Palagruža, and one smaller one, Mala Palagruža, and there are twenty or so other closely associated rocks or reefs...
- Traditional fishing boatsTraditional fishing boatsTraditionally, many different kinds of boats have been used as fishing boats to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Even today, many traditional fishing boats are still in use. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization , at the end of 2004, the world fishing fleet...