Basque Whalers

          If there is one animal from Basque tradition that is linked to the world of myth and magic, it´s undoubtedly the whale.

          From the Middle Ages to the 19th century, one of the main activities of Basque sailors was hunting the whale in the Bay of Biscay, Iceland and later Canada, especially Labrador and Newfoundland.

           

         A man would watch from a tower and alert the sailors, who would row towards the whales and hunt them with harpoons. The most expensive product was the fat, which was used as lighter fuel as it burned without giving off smoke and was odorless.