LOCKMAN’S VAST IMPORTANCE
John Lockman's 1750 pamphlet: the herring's importance to the National Wealth, our Naval Strength and, of course, dealing with the Highlanders
Rigby’s Encyclopaedia of the Herring
aka The Herripedia
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HERRING BUSS (TUNE)
A jig from 1750, The Herring Buss, is found and played for you by the excellent English concertina player Rob Harbron
DUMAS ON HERRING
Dumas and his Grand Dictionary of Cuisine, a flawed translation corrected and all its herring jokes and recipes restored
A-Z Entries
PROPHETIC HERRINGS
On the strange markings discovered on two herrings and their possible connection with the death of Denmark's Frederick II five months later
PURSE SEINING
The development, efficiencies and impacts of the purse seine net for herring fishing (other fish, of course, also apply)
QUOTAS
A brief history of overfishing, recent attempts at controlling it, together with thoughts on stock conservation and capitalism
RACIAL THEORY
The development of thinking around herring population difference and some uncomfortable parallels with racial theories of mankind
RECIPES FROM THE HERRING BOARD
A curious case of a three version booklet by two different cooks, promoting the herring with some very 1930s recipes
RED HERRING
Not just a euphemism for a false trail, but a kind of smoked herring that has probably served as a euphemism for a false trail since at least the C16th
RED HERRING JOKE, THE
The story of the red herring gag shared between Shakespeare, Jonson & Nashe in at least six great literary works
RING NET: WILL MACLEAN
An interview with Scottish artist Will Maclean on his documentary exhibition, The Ring Net, which he developed between 1973 and 1978
RING NETTING
On the rise and demise of ring net fishing for herring, which originated in the waters of Loch Fyne and played a role in the sad development of overfishing
ROLLMOPS & BISMARCKS
On the popular German vinegar-based cures, together with an origin story for one of them and a basic recipe for the marinade
SALT
An 8,000 year history of salt and salt pickling, paying particular attention to the preservation of herrings by the German Hanse, the Dutch and the British.
SARDINES
The sardine in cans, on the slab and in popular culture; the limits of self-identification for herrings and non-European pilchards