Competences, job profiles

Depicting the island of Vis is impossible without comprehending its relation to the fishermen of the open sea islands in Central Dalmatia, whose base for centuries was the town of Komiža. Facing the necessity to adjust to the open sea conditions, they designed a versatile boat adapted to the fishing in the dangerous waters. Its name is gajeta falkuša (Italian: gaeta falcata) which captivates Komiža fishermen’s most important invention and legacy. Komiža people developed advanced fish processing industry and spread this industry to the rest of the world, being pioneers of modern fisheries and processing technologies. In 1870 the first sardine cannery had been founded in Komiža, and in the first half of the 20th century there were as many as 7 canneries. In the early 20th century Komiža took pride in 260 fishing boats and 1500 fishermen, and there was also progress in the development of various trades related to fish processing, such as the construction of boats, oars, barrels, ropes and smithery. All fishermen houses located at the seashore had a basement room for the salting of fish. Hundreds of barrels of salted anchovies and pilchard were exported to Greece, Venice and other parts of the Mediterranean.