Saltfish in the Bottom

In the summer we dry salted fish in the field by Turnhúsið. In the 19th century, salted fish became Iceland's main export product. It soon became the basis of the economy in Ísafjörður and by far the most valuable product sold by Ísafjörður merchants on foreign markets until the 1940s, when it was replaced by frozen fish.

The growth and prosperity of Ísafjörður was based primarily on the production and export of salted fish, and large areas of land on the island were set aside for fishing in the summer in the late 19th century and early 20th century.

During the summer, men would haul their catch out to sea, while women, children, and old people would work on land. When the fish was landed, the fishmongers would take it, trim it, and remove the blood and membrane. Then the fish would be washed thoroughly with straw brushes. Finally, it would be rinsed before being taken to the fields for salting.

In the fields, the salters received the fish, loaded them onto racks and salted them. They were kept like this for about 2 weeks until the spreading began, which took place on sunny or dry days. Then the fish were carried out to the fields and spread on rocks or low wooden frames. In the evening, they were loaded back into position and covered with a tarpaulin to protect them from the rain.

As the summer wore on, the final preparation of the salted fish for export began to be considered. They began by checking how dry it had become.

If the fish was held against the sun with one hand and the finger of the other hand could be seen through the nape, it was considered completely dry. Likewise, if it remained straight when the tail was taken and held horizontally. After drying, the fish was brought indoors and stacked according to size into large fish, medium fish and small fish, then it was shipped out to merchant ships that transported it to foreign markets.

The Spanish and Portuguese were the main buyers, but the Spanish market closed when the civil war broke out in that country in 1936. This was a significant blow to the fish processing industry in the country, but it was not long before a new method, quick freezing, emerged and became the main method of processing fish in Iceland.