[Susanna family ledger].

Format:

Book

Manuscript

Language:

Italian

Subjects (All):

Accounting--Italy--16th century.

Accounting.

Farm life--Italy--History.

Farm life.

Farm management--Italy.

Farm management.

Real property--Italy--16th century.

Real property.

History.

Italy--Rural conditions.

Italy.

Rural conditions.

Friuli (Italy)--History.

Friuli (Italy).

Genre:

codices (bound manuscripts)

credit records

ledgers (account books)

accounts

Manuscripts, Italian -- 16th century.

Manuscripts, Renaissance.

Penn Provenance:

Sold by Samuel Gedge Ltd. (Mundesley, England), cat. 8 (2010), no. 106.

Physical Description:

173 leaves : paper ; 211 x 151 mm bound to 214 x 157 mm + 1 folder (3 notes)

Place of Publication:

[Friuli], 1597-1600.

Language Note:

Italian, with a few words in Friulian (northeastern Italian) dialect.

Summary:

Ledger of accounts of an unidentified member of the Susanna(?) family, covering the years 1597-1600. The ledger, written in the first person, includes the nature of a given credit or debt and its amount, as well as listing the names of the individuals that hold the debt or credit. The majority of transactions concern the payment of a variable fee by tenants to the Susanna landlord for the occupancy of land or farms and use of pastures and woods. The Susanna family owned a large portion of land on the Italian-Slovenian border, including territories in the towns of Nebola, Crisso, Centa di Nebola, Vedrignano, Lonzano, and San Lorenzo di Nebola, all appearing in the manuscript. Different forms of legal agreements between landlord and tenants are mentioned throughout the ledger: the occupiers are sharecroppers (who pay a fee equal to half of the annual production from each property), tenant farmers (some in crop fixed rent contracts, referred to as contratti di livello, usually paying partly in cash and partly in kind; and some in rental agreements, referred to as contratti di locazione, who only pay cash), and agricultural laborers (who are paid by the landlord in kind and, more rarely, in cash). Among the names of the tenants are various members of the Zampino, Cocinaciz, Cabai (also referred to as Chabai), Saurin, and Zerian families, as well as the religious fraternity of San Lorenzo di Nebola. A detailed alphabetical index of the names is located at the end of the volume. Two later notes, one dated 1651, the other 1695, were laid in the manuscript. The former is an affidavit concerning the sale of land formerly belonging to Cristofforo Sutana, with two signets in ink, one including a sketch of a bird. The latter is a receipt of payment signed by Antonio Colombo. These 2 notes plus another fragment formerly laid in the manuscript are now in a separate folder shelved with the manuscript.

Notes:

Ms. codex.

Title supplied by cataloger.

Foliation: Paper, 173; 1-85, [i], 86-92, 94-141, 144-164, 166-173, 182-183, [184], contemporary foliation in ink, modern foliation in pencil, upper right recto (f.142-143, 165, 174-181 severed).

Script: Written in a cursive script, perhaps by multiple hands.

Watermark: Similar to Briquet, Arbalète 770 (Pizzighettone, Milan, 1600).

Binding: Contemporary limp sheep(?), geometric pattern ruled in blind and 1597 written on upper cover; decorative leatherwork and blind ruling on spine.

Origin: Written in Friuli, at the Italian-Slovenian border, between 1597 (f.1r) and 1600 (f.113v).

Cited as:

Susanna Family Ledger (Ms. Codex 1568). Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania.

OCLC:

660031054

Access Restriction:

Access to this item is subject to staff review.