Information on Fish...

Fish keeping has been a pastime for centuries. Romans have been known to keep sea barbell under their guests’ beds, in marble tanks! Some time later they swapped a marble side for a piece of glass so the poor fish could see out. Through the centuries different people experimented with all sorts of aquariums; saltwater, coral and marine tanks soon appeared. The first large public aquarium opened at London Zoo in 1853, and was known as The Fish House. Soon after, fish keeping exploded in the United Kingdom. 

The Victorians designed a home aquarium, which had a glass front and wooden sides. The wood was coated with pitch to stop the water from leaking out. To heat the water, the aquarium was placed on a piece of heated slate. Just after World War 1, electricity was introduced to most homes, and fish keeping became far more advanced, with the implementation of filtration systems, water heaters and aeration. With the introduction of airfreight in the 1950’s, plastic shipping bags were manufactured, and the import of tropical fish boomed. Metal-framed fish tanks were introduced in the 1960’s, which meant that the tanks did not corrode as much, but eventually someone came up with the idea of a silicon sealant, which meant that fish tanks were now made completely of glass, and fish could be seen from every angle.