Portuguese Medieval Fishing Boat

Timeline

1. 1200–1300Porto estuary · NorthFishermen in northern Portugal's estuaries and bays used small flat- or round-bottomed wooden boats, fishing with oars and sails in coastal waters; the light hulls were easy to haul ashore, and the catch was transported via inland waterways to town markets.
2. 1331–1340Nazaré fishing village · CentralDuring the reign of Afonso IV, active inshore fisheries were maintained along the central and southern coasts of Portugal; fishing boats were mostly open hulls 8–15 meters long, and fishermen went out in groups to catch sardine shoals, the catch salted for domestic trade and the Castilian border market.
3. 1400–1500Lagos · AlgarveIn the 15th century, shipbuilding skills improved along the Algarve coast, and fishing boat designs absorbed the rigging and steering techniques of larger caravels, passing on craftsmen and seafaring experience to Portugal's later oceanic fishing and exploration fleets.