From 1949 to 1955, the national government (Fisheries Agency) commissioned the Institute for the Study of Japanese Folk Culture to conduct a research and preservation project on fishery systems materials. Approximately 200,000 items of fishery and fishing-village materials from across Japan were collected and stored at the National Research Institute of Fisheries Science, Japan Fisheries Research and Education Agency. Among them were materials related to fishing rights as well as illustrated maps and other documents.
　The Institute was commissioned to collate and catalog the collection, but the project is currently suspended.
　In publishing the catalog, researchers visited the homes of the materials' former owners to inquire about their origins. They also interviewed local researchers for insights on the materials. To date, 12 catalogs of the materials and two overview catalogs have been published.

Duration: 2001-2019
Note: While the commissioned research has been suspended since FY2020, the cooperative relationship is ongoing.