Southern Italy in the Late Middle Ages

Sakellariou, Eleni

doi:10.1163/9789004224056

Cited by 26 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…85 In 1477 the first nucleus of the guild was formed, made up of everyone who took part in the creation of silk textiles, and the following year detailed rules were promulgated to protect the quality of the products, whose range was already very wide: a distinction that would be maintained and strengthened in the following century. 86 The three cases on which I have focused, even in their historical specificity, present a scenario in common: the decisive role played by public authorities convinced that manufacturing could create employment and well-being; the use of contracts with individual specialists, usually foreigners; and the exchange between the authorities granting more or less extensive privileges to new arrivals and their commitment to activate a certain number of looms and/or produce a specific quota of textiles. In the silk sector, therefore, a model of integration between public initiative and private competences had emerged that would lead to the birth or take-off of new production activities.…”

Section: The Intervention Of Public Powersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Big Business for Firms and States: Silk Manufacturing in Renaissance Italy

Franceschi¹

2020

Bus. Hist. Rev.

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Silk manufacturing began in Lucca in the twelfth century and by the fifteenth century Italy had become the largest producer of silk textiles in Europe, nurtured by extensive domestic and foreign demand for the luxurious fabric. This essay explores the market for silk textiles, the organization of the silk industry, and the role played in it by guilds, entrepreneurs and their capital, and highly sought after artisans. Just as silk manufacturing was an important and lucrative business for entrepreneurs, this article argues, so was it a crucial strategic activity for the governments of Italy's Renaissance states, whose incentives, protections, and investments helped to start up and grow the sector with the aim of generating wealth and strengthening their respective economies.

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Section: The Intervention Of Public Powersmentioning

confidence: 99%