Water and its bounty have always been a necessity of life for the people living in Southern Savo. Fishing put food on the table and commercial fishing has provided many people with a livelihood. Some of the fishing methods still being used were already used in prehistoric times. The world’s oldest fishing net was found in Finland. The most important fishing method used by commercial fishermen is purse-seining, where the fish are surrounded by the seine in order to catch them.

Diorama of a fishing harbour at the Enonkoski Museum

This diorama depicts the boats of inland fishermen, their tackle and the place where they store their equipment. The work is exquisitely detailed: the seine, nets and fykes have all been created according to their full-size brethren and the birch knapsack is decorated with vendace scales.

Boys from a club at the Enonkoski Upper Elementary School built a diorama of a Savo-Karelian fishing harbour in 1964.The diorama was named ”Fishing Grounds”. It was entered in the ”Työ kunniaan” competition at the Finnish Jubilee for upper elementary schools in Oulu 29–31 May 1964. Their diorama won first prize in the student club series. The prize of FIM 200 (approx. EUR 320) that they won was to be used for a study trip.

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A fishing estate at the Finnish Museum of Lake Fishing in Kerimäki

The Finnish Museum of Lake Fishing provides visitors with the opportunity to learn more about a fishing estate, which depicts the life (1880–1950) of a household who fished inland waters for their livelihood. This household was wealthy; fishing was a worthwhile occupation.

The fishing estate is comprised of the main building from the Ollila estate and the outbuildings have been brought from other estates. The main building was brought from Puruvesi on Hevossalo Island to its current location in the 1990s. It was built in the 1840s or 1850s and has been expanded several times. In the beginning, the building was a simple chimneyless hut, but in the 1890s, a chimney was added to it. The main building has been mainly decorated as if it were still the 1920–30s. The outbuildings have displays of equipment for fishing with seines, nets, etc.

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