Very scant information indeed seems to be forthcoming about the French manufacturer of the swimming and diving products listed and illustrated in the current publication. The author has conducted many exhaustive online and printed literature searches to little avail. The most fruitful points of reference have been Vianney Mascret’s doctoral thesis and the Musée Frédéric-Dumas and Skin Diving History virtual museums. All the author’s findings are now published here as a collage of what he has gleaned from such sources.
Left above, Fusido publicity from 1948 with the slogan “Tout ce qui concerne la chasse sous-marine : Un sport passionnant, à la portée de tous” [Everything underwater hunting related: An exciting sport, accessible to all”]. Right above, an advertisement placed by Aquafun of Davenport, Iowa, for Fusido diving masks and breathing tubes exported from France to the USA during the 1950s.
According to Vianney Mascret’s 2010 Claude Bernard University Lyon 1 thesis L’aventure sous-marine: Histoire de la plongée sous-marine de loisir en scaphandre autonome en France (1865-1985) [Underwater adventure: History of recreational underwater diving in France, 1865-1985]:
So back in 1941, Fusido was one of four underwater hunting gear manufacturers operating in the city of Nice, located on the French Riviera, the southeastern coast of France on the Mediterranean Sea, at the foot of the French Alps.
The Fusido brand was established by Léon Vitrant, who obtained not only French Patent 862,766 for improvements to underwater hunters’ spearguns in December 1940 but also French Patent 888,273 for enhancements to underwater explorers’ masks and snorkels in August 1943. The patent drawings are reproduced below:
Masks, snorkels and spearguns became the core products of the Fusido brand. The present publication illustrates and documents what the author has found out about Fusido mask, snorkel and speargun models from the sparse online and printed literature relating to Léon Vitrant and his Fusido spearfishing equipment brand.
As of 1948, the Fusido company premises were located at 1, quai Rauba, Capeu, Nice, France. The current view of that address appears above.
Fusido NICL2 model (Musée Dumas) |
Exhaust valve model (Skin Diving History) |
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Fusido mask: Valve model (Musée Dumas) |
 Fusido spear gun:Fusido Pistoledo 1947 (Musée Dumas) |
Fusido spear gun:Fusido Pistoledo 1951- 1952 (Musée Dumas) |
Fusido spear gun: Model A 1943 - 1950 (Musée Dumas) |
Fusido spear gun: Model B 1946 - 1951 (Musée Dumas) |
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