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Traditional Mallorcan object

Gànguil i xarxes

At a glance

- Gànguil (Mall., Eiv.): long, conical net bag, opened by an iron ring, which a boat drags along the bottom to catch shrimp and small fish (DCVB). It is…

Objects and tools
Traditional Mallorcan object
Words
adobar xarxes, art de bou, bolitx, gànguil, malla, trasmall
Events
3

What is

  • Gànguil (Mall., Eiv.): long, conical net bag, opened by an iron ring, which a boat drags along the bottom to catch shrimp and small fish (DCVB). It is small trawl art. Gànguil also names a fishing boat with a flat sail with equal bow and stern.
  • Xarxa: knotted thread network in square or rhombus mesh. The fish sticks its head in and is hooked by the gills.

How is

  • Gànguil: net cone + iron ring in the mouth + drag ropes. Unverified measurements.
  • Xarxes (DCVB):
  • xarxa prima: narrow mesh.
  • xarxa cega: very narrow mesh, small fish.
  • xarxes soltes: a single fabric.
  • trasmall (or xarxa de tiret, essmallada): three fabrics; the central one fine and the two outer ones made of thick thread and wide mesh. The fish pushes the thin fabric through the wide one and is bagged.
  • Bolitx: like the art de bou but smaller and with a narrower mesh (DCVB).
  • Material: previously hemp or cotton, dyed to preserve it (check dye in Mallorca); today nylon.

How is fa

The nets were made and mended by the fishermen and their families, with a net needle and measuring mesh (mostra, to verify the term). Corders thread ( corderia ). The xarxer master makes boat rigging, not fishing nets ( latina sail ).

Com s'usa

  • Gànguil: crawls at low speed over sand or mud bottoms; It is brought on board and emptied.
  • Trasmall: it is set vertically in the afternoon (leads below, corks above) and rises at dawn.
  • Marinade: mend the nets on the dock or in the vorera hut ( escars ), a daily task.

Vocabulary

  • gànguil: conical trawl net with iron ring (Mall., Eiv.); also boat.
  • xarxa / xerxa: red (xerxa in Balearic pronunciation).
  • malla: network box.
  • trasmall: three-ply net.
  • xarxa cega: very narrow mesh.
  • bolitx: small trawl gear.
  • art de bou: trawling between two boats (bou fishing).
  • adobar xarxes: mend them.
  • «Va dexar ses xerxes y es palangres»: Mallorcan quote from the newspaper L'Ignorància (DCVB).

History

  • 1310: the bolig (bolitx) already regulated in documents (DCVB).
  • 1514: prohibition of fishing with xàvega, bolitx and other gear in certain areas (BSAL, DCVB).
  • 1764: "a gàngill from Alger" arrives in Mallorca with 47 oxen (BSAL, DCVB): gànguil as a boat.
  • 20th century: bou fishing in Porto Cristo (study by the Manacor City Council); nylon replaces hemp.
  • Today: trasmall continues in the minor arts; the gànguil de prawn in Mallorca: legal status to be verified.

On veure'n

  • Maritime Museum of Mallorca (Palma); Museum of the Sea (Port de Sóller).
  • Portocolom docks, Cala Rajada, Port de Sóller: nets hanging and fishermen mending.

Why is it design

  • Mesh as a rule: the size of the hole decides which fish stays: design = resource management.
  • Trasmall: three layers that turn the net into a bag only when the fish hits.
  • Infinitely repairable: meshes are changed, not entire networks.

For the project

  • Workshop: mending nets with fishermen from a port on the island (adob craft, almost invisible).
  • Piece: recycled old fishing net (textile, space dividers) with the frame.
  • Search the Porto Cristo study on bou fishing for the atlas.

Frequently asked questions

What is Gànguil i xarxes?

- Gànguil (Mall., Eiv.): long, conical net bag, opened by an iron ring, which a boat drags along the bottom to catch shrimp and small fish (DCVB). It is…

What are the traditional words for Gànguil i xarxes?

Some words: adobar xarxes, art de bou, bolitx, gànguil, malla, trasmall, xarxa / xerxa, xarxa cega.

Sources

Working text from the Disseny Indígena knowledge base, machine-translated from Spanish.

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