River Rhine, Basel, Switzerland

The „fischerhäuschen“ und „fischergalgen“ on the banks of the rhine in basel are rarely used for fishing than they used to be. in earlier times the fishing gallows were still called "salmenwaage" or "fischwoog". the dialect word “woog” means something like “deepest water point”, which could be an indication of the location of this fishing tackle, *not* of a relationship with the scales ⚖️. the “woog fishing” on salmon was mainly carried out during the night and less during the day; unless the rhine was slightly clouded. the catch was most productive in may, june, july and september. the fishing gallows known today have only existed since the end of the 19th century. the „fischerhäuschen“ und „fischergalgen“ is practically the luxury version of the fishing gallows, which has been around for much longer as fishing gear. the fishermen's cottages came “in vogue” at a point in time when the salmon was about to withdraw from this body of water. at the same time, the leisure behavior of the urban bourgeoisie changed: out, back to nature, but with comfort and the latest fishing technology. the principle of fishing has remained the same: a metal rod on which a square net was lowered to the bottom of the river with a crank and then lifted up again as soon as the fish were above the net. the fishermen only had to wait on their stool - the „böggli“ - until enough fish swam over the net in order to then pull it up.Read more