"Fly Fishing's oldest knot dating from
The Treatyse of Fysshynge With an Angle
(1496): "Whan ye haue as many of the lynkys as ye
suppose wol suffyse for the length of the lyne: thenne
must y knytte theym to gyder wyth a water knotte or
elles a duchy knotte. And whan your knotte is knytte:
kytte of pe voyde shorte endes a strawe brede for the
knotte. Thus shal ye make youre lynes fayr & fine."
The knot, also knows as the surgeons knot, is described
and illustrated in the John Hawkins edition of The
Complete Angler (1766): "To tye a Water-knot, lay the
end of one of your hairs about five inches or less, over
that of the other, and through this loop which you would make
to tye them in the common way, pass the long and short end
of the hairs, which will lie to the right of the loop, twice,
and wetting the Knot with your tongue, draw it close, and
cut off the spare hair." Notice that there are two turns
through the loop and that the knot is wetted before closure.
Although not as symmetrical as a blood knot, the water knot
is sage and strong when joining different diameters."
~ Jim Birkholm
Credits: The quoted text and drawing from The Fly Fishers
Illustrated Dictionary, by Darrel Martin, Published by the Lyons
Press.
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