In addition to viticulture, the main livelihood of the people on the shores of Lake Balaton has been fishing for centuries. This was especially true in Tihany, where coastal waters date back to the 19th and 20th centuries. At the turn of the 19th cen-tury, four or six companies (companies) fished every day. One of these was the Disznós Guild, whose guild house now serves as a skansen and its shed as a showcase for fishing gear.
In addition to professional fishermen, who at the end of the 19th century could only operate on the eastern coast of the peninsula, as the western side belonged to the abbey, occasionally poachers also took their prey. In Tihany, every second family had a 10-15 meter long walking net, which was used close to the shore while stand-ing in the water up to the waist. With each immersion, 3-4 quintals of fish could be caught at this time. Bream and stew, also known as breadfish, were bought by poor people in the surrounding villages from housewives who “buy fish, fish, soon, be-cause they won’t stay!” - they shouted through the streets. The best of the noble fish (pike, catfish, pike, carp) is went to the fish markets of Pest, Graz and Vienna.
The main fishing season was winter, as the catch could be transported long dis-tances without the risk of deterioration of the goods. The fishermen cut an intrica-te, hexagonal drainage system into the thick ice, on which they towed the net with the help of special tools that also appeares in the exhibition. To pull the net full of fish, breeching attached to their waist or shoulders wwas used.
An ancient tool for summer fishing was the barge, which was dug out of a single tree trunk and made waterproof with the help of cattle manure. The volatile, dif-ficult-to-steer barge ship was replaced by the Komárom-type board-ship around 1890. The two main types of fishing on Lake Balaton were driftnet fishing with cot-ton nets and trawl fishing with hemp twine. In the former method, the fish became entangled in the fine material of the net that had been released into the water and left there for a few hours, while in the second case, the surrounded prey was forced into the boat or ashore by the fishermen.