Sua Fish
Seasonal variation in fish occurs and is important to document these changes in order to understand seasonal fishing patterns in the present as well as the past.
Modern views of ancient Indus Valley sites.
Sting Ray
While not usually used for food, sting-rays, sharks, and skates are important to the fishing industry itself. The livers are harvested by specialists in the village who boil them down to make a thick, malodorous oil.
Crabs in Basket
Crabs and other crustaceans are caught and used as a minor food item. These animals are considered extremely "hot" and are eaten for the treatment of ailments such as the flu or colds.
Master Potter
Mohammad Nawaz, master potter from Harappa, demonstrates how fish scale and intersecting circle motifs may have been painted onto Harappan pottery.
Knitting Net
Mornings are usually spent fishing while afternoons are spent repairing nets. Although most nets are now commercially manufactured, repair work is down by the owners or their sons. Fishermen work in groups, either helping each other are larger nets.
Palmhuts of shepherds, on Andhar Range
Palmhuts of shepherds, on Andhar Range, Hab Valley
Fisherman with net
The main fish protein source focuses on smaller fish that are caught in the inshore area. One of the main methods used to catch these is a casting net.
Boy with inshore gill net
Other fish are used for commercial sale, but these inshore fisheries provide the bulk of food for the household. Here a younger member of a local household is pulling up his inshore fixed gill net.
Harappa Potters
Mohammad Nawaz (center) and Zaman (right) holding replicas of hand-built Ravi style pottery. Bashir on the left holds an original Ravi bowl-on-stand that dates to around 3300 BCE.
Man with Fish head
Today large fish are primarily for sale on the commercial market. A fishmonger would arrive from town to purchase the fish and take them to the various urban markets in town.