Perle, gioie e pegni. Il ruolo dei preziosi nel mercato del credito e degli scambi nella Venezia cinquecentesca

Abstract

In the early modern period hoarded jewels and precious stones performed diversified functions, ranging from the cultural to the socio-economic sphere. This article analyses their use as an alternative to cash in 16th-century Venice, focusing on the case study of the Jewish ghetto. The aim is to investigate how those objects were employed in the credit market (and to perform advanced financial business) and to test their interchangeability with metal currency; if not their preferred recourse. To enhance this trend, Renaissance Venice was experiencing widespread access to those items among a large part of the population. How women could profit from those money-equivalent goods, thanks to the peculiarities of Venetian law in the matter of dowries and inheritance, will be also examined.