Fish Spears

A number of fishing spears has been identified from the period and these have taken a number of different styles. The type of fishing that would have taken place with the use of spears would have involved the larger top-feeding fish and mammals. The larger and more robust spear would have been used to hunt for whale, porpoise, seal and sturgeon whereas the finer spear would have been used for fish such as salmon, mullet, eel, etc. Eels were a favoured fish of the period and these were caught by spear too. During the winter months the eel buries itself into the mud together with other eels. By using a spear one can poke around into the muddy bottoms of river or estuary until an 'eel nest' is located; many eels can be caught in this manner.