15 Portrait
Maryvonne Galliou, known as Mone, seaweed harvester of the islands
Mone Galliou, bezhinaerez war an inizi
Born on 8 August 1921 at Kérazan (Lilia), Mone Galliou grew up in the seaweed-harvesting world. She was only eight years old when she lost her mother. After attending the state school in Lilia until the age of eleven, she had to stay at home to look after her young brothers and sisters and also take part in harvesting the seaweed.
Married in 1939, widowed in 1949, she came to live in Perroz, on the shore of the Aber-Wrac’h, with her two little girls.
In 1955, she remarried Jean-Louis Cabon, a seaweed harvester at Perroz. In the late 1950s, fitting out the Marie-Renée, off they went, bound for Molène to harvest the seaweed. For about ten seasons, from March to October, Mone would practise this hard trade. Sculling, handling the hook and the guillotine, harnessing the horse, driving the cart, spreading out the seaweed: these were tasks familiar to her.
In retirement, Mone and Jean-Louis returned to Perroz and went on harvesting black seaweed for many more years.