Artificial fly
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An artificial fly or fly lure is a type of fishing lure, usually used in the sport of fly fishing. In general, artificial flies are an imitation of aquatic insects that are natural food of the target fish species the fly fishers try to catch. Artificial flies are constructed by fly tying, in which furs, feathers, thread or any of very many other materials are tied onto a fish hook.
Classic 19th-century artificial fly – The Triumph
First known illustration of a fishing fly from 4th. edition (1652) of John Dennys's The Secrets of Angling, first published in 1613, probably the earliest poetical English treatise on Angling.,
Frontispiece from Bowlker's Art of Angling (1854) showing a variety of artificial flies
Illustration of a large Pike fly (1865)
Fly tying
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Fly tying is the process of producing an artificial fly used by fly fishing anglers to catch fish. Fly tying is a manual process done by a single individual using hand tools and a variety of natural and manmade materials that are attached to a hook. Although the recent history of fly tying dates from the middle 1800s, fly tyers were engaged in tying flys since at least 200 AD.
Frederic M. Halford, 19th Century English fly tyer
Ogden's improved fly vise (1887)
The fly dresser's tools from The Trout Fly Dresser's Cabinet of Devices or How To Tie Flies for Trout and Grayling Fishing (1919)
Fly tying workbench