Fishing boat with casting net

A casting net was a round net, about five to seven meters in circumference, with a rope in the center and lead weights around the outside. The fisherman on the beach or in the boat held on to the rope and threw the net into the water with a circular motion. The act of throwing caused the net to fan out and it fell like a kind of parachute onto the lake. The weights ensured it sank to the bottom. The fisherman would then pull the rope, closing the net like a bag, and draw the full net into the boat.