Sardines, from boat to plate
Brittany's flagship fish, the sardine, is much more than a simple food product, and has contributed to the economy and culture of an entire region for many decades.
Fishing
A basic fish for coastal populations, sardines have been fished and eaten since antiquity. In the 18th century, Brittany's fishing boats brought in 50% of the entire French production volume.
Pêche à la sardine by Ambroise Louis GarnerayMusée de la Pêche
At the time, sardines were fished aboard sardine boats, small boats with no deck that were used for other catches during the rest of the year.
La flottille des sardiniersMusée de la Pêche
The golden age of sardine fishing in Brittany and especially Concarneau lasted until the beginning of the 20th century. A new type of sail boat, the cutter, appeared and the fishermen made use of workboats, which were smaller and easier to steer. The pinnace therefore replaced earlier sardine boats.
Sardine was first fished using roe (salted cod eggs) with different types of nets, mesh, which were straight then drifting.
La pêche à la sardine au filet tournant ou bolinche (1981/1981) by Atelier du muséeMusée de la Pêche
At the end of the 19th century, sardine was still fished as it was in 1500, until the encircling net appeared. Next came motorization and two other types of fishing: use of the purse seine in the 1950s and pelagic trawling in the 1970s.
The purse seine is a rotating net (or seine) that surrounds as quickly as possible a shoal of fish, having been detected using sonar.
Pelagic trawling, with its net in the shape of a pocket, spreads out in the water, between the surface and the sea floor, without making contact with the latter.
SalabardeMusée de la Pêche
Trapped sardines are brought up in the nets onto the boat, called a bolincheur, using a brailer.
Arrival in port
Found near the coast, between the surface and the sea floor, the sardine is a very fragile fish that is difficult to store. It is therefore fished near the coast so that it can be brought back to port as quickly as possible.
Les sardiniers au portMusée de la Pêche
When the boats return, the factory representatives or komiserez (committed) wait at the end of the jetty. They select the boats and negotiate loudly the price of the cargo.
Jetons à sardinesMusée de la Pêche
Up until the beginning of the 20th century, sardine ports used a single currency: sardine tokens. Unlike other fish, sardines are sold not by weight but by the thousand, a procedure that allows fishermen to count their catches.
Because it was often impossible to pay the fishermen immediately when the fish are teeming, the canneries paid them provisionally with tokens, which differed depending on the factory.
Made of an alloy of zinc, bronze, or lead, these tokens were labelled "200 sardines" or "400 sardines" and were collected by the master of the boat who later claimed the sum equivalent to the tokens.
In 1931, a number of canneries were still present in Concarneau, between the Ville Close and the sea.
Consumption
The most ancient technique of conservation is to dry the fish. Next came smoking the fish. Dry salting the fish or placing them in brine or oil are procedures that continue to be used for conserving food. However, these methods have as a downside, in that they modify the flavor of the fish.
Presse à sardines (vers 1928)Musée de la Pêche
Sardine pressing is an essential step in the conservation process. Whole sardines are placed in wooden barrels called tinettes. Placed in layers separated by salt, they stay there for several days.
Pressing is done using a press, which is made of a wooden beam, which, placed high up, puts its weight in the tinette where the sardines are stacked. The oil that is collected is sold separately.
At the beginning of the 19th century, Nicolas Appert perfected a new conservation procedure: airtight packaging for sterilization. The tin can industry was born.
Towards 1824, Joseph Colin, a confectioner from Nantes, had the idea to use this method for sardines. Many canneries were then set up on the French coast, particularly in Concarneau.
Initially, the cans were soldered and manufactured by tinsmiths. At the end of the 19th century, the procedure for crimping cans was mechanized. The growing progress of the industry led to an acceleration in the production of cans, which thanks to the invention of the mechanical crimper, no longer needed to be closed by hand.
Sertisseuse (1900)Musée de la Pêche
The crimper allows the tin cans to be hermetically sealed.
These days, though preservation procedures have evolved, the consumption of tinned sardines remains an important part of household life.
Sardine tin collectors are also delighted by these beautifully illustrated cans.
Sardine cans manufactured for the Musée de la Pêche. Left, an original illustration by René Lefèvre for the cannery Provost Barbe. Right, visual created by Anh Gloux to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Musée de la Pêche.
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