By Roxani Margariti. Dimitra’s fascinating examination  of the majestic species Thunnus thynnus , its cousins, and the lethal traps that brought them to markets through the ages rekindled my curiosity about the spectacular stationary fishing nets I saw in the South Indian state of Kerala during a visit there in the summer of 2024.  Lining the shores of the city of Kochi, historic Cochin, the nets and their cantilever frames feature in countless photographs that capture their

By Roxani Margariti. The blocks that make up this ruined but elegant archway are made of quarried coral, one of the materials we will...

In a class on Indian Ocean commodities, economy, and materiality, every year my students and I come across this scribe’s desk at the...

They are not fish, they are not humans either… they are not of the land, but neither are they unequivocally creatures of the sea...

“When they catch sight of one [a dead whale filled with ambergris], they haul it ashore with iron grapnels attached to stout ropes...