Medieval Fisherman of
Saint Zeno from Verona
History of hook making
are few written documents about the dawn of the fly fishing. The ideas
about the possible and real place where it started, and about the ways it
was spread go from Ælian to medieval times and first books about fishing.
That is why all details from those times are valuable.
the restoration of frescoes in the church in the Borso Del Grappa, north
of Verona in Italy, the old painting was discovered showing Saint Zeno the
protector of fishermen. The saint was of African origin and he was the
eight Bishop of Verona, who lived in IV century and died in 372. The
original church where the fresco was discovered was built in VI century,
and the painting was created by Jacobo Da Bassana around 1538.
beauty and precision of the painting, and the fact that he was protector
of fishermen are not the only reasons why it is interesting for fly
fishermen. Like in the case of the Monastery of St. John the Divine, the
painter took a bit of liberty from church canons and added a few
interesting details. The portrait of Saint Zeno had one particularly fine
detail, which makes it very valuable for investigators of the fly fishing
history. On a first glance there is only a slender rod with a white line
and a fish on its end. The closer observation opens a number of questions
for all who care about the history of fly fishing.
It can be clearly seen that the Saint is holding a rod and a white line.
In obviously experienced way the old man is holding the weight of the
fish, while at the same time he uses his small finger to divide it from
his clothes and the rest of the tackle, in order to avoid tangling. The
details showed are fascinating. The fish caught was a grayling, and the
droppers can also be observed, also the knots and what is most important –
the flies. It seems that he used a system with three flies, of which the
first is in the fish’s mouth, and the others hang down on the line freely.
Although the picture leaves no doubts about what it shows, there are still
some questions which can be asked: was the picture created in order to
connect the religion to man and his ordinary life, or wish to show
importance of fish as a symbol in Christian religion. This was obviously a
work of someone who knew well the fly fishing of that time and had a
precise description of someone who lived twelve centuries previously. Be
it as it may, it is clear that the history of the spreading of fly fishing
followed the history of civilization, with migrations, wars, pilgrims …
Along that way there are a stones which form a mosaic that would give the
answers to the questions we are seeking. Maybe we would never reach the
full mosaic, but as long as we try and collect its pieces we would prove
that we are interesting not only in fishing as such but also in the
identity of the civilization itself.
and monasteries in ancient times were the only centers of literacy and
culture and that is why many data were discovered there.
Brown trout was always important both in culinary and sporting way. The
idea of fly fishing was built in order to catch that elusive fish. In is
interesting to know that it is present in very old church mosaics. One of
them was discovered close to the Ohrid lake, in a basilica built in VI
century, where there is clearly shown a “fish with speckles on its skin”.