Eel Boats Drying Nets

Christian Asmussen

An image of eel drifters at sunset, likely anchored alongside the shores of Fejo Island. Their eel-seine nets are lifted from the water and stretched between booms to dry. “Eel drifters” were built to literally drift sideways across the water, their nets stretched between the fore and aft booms and dragged through the water to catch eels which would then be placed in “wet wells” built into the boat to keep them fresh for sale. Of particular note were the eel boat builders of Fejo Island, whose style of boat was based on old Viking designs. Here, a calm sea and a rosy sunset illuminate the end of the workday in Christian Asmussen’s delicate watercolor.

This watercolor is from the collection of Danish critic and author Georg Bröchner (1874-1933) who wrote for the British art magazine "The Studio" in the early 20th century.