ЗАДУЖНИЦЕ ТРГОВАЦА СА ОСМАНСКОГ БАЛКАНА У ПОСЛОВНИМ КЊИГАМА КОМПАНИЈЕ ГВАДАЊИНИ (1739–1770)
PROMISSORY NOTES OF MERCHANTS FROM THE OTTOMAN BALKANS IN THE BUSINESS BOOKS OF THE GUADAGNINI COMPANY (1739–1770)

Summary/Abstract: In the Museo Correr Library (Biblioteca del Museo Correr) in Venice, within the Provenienze Diverse collection, there is a folder whose cover bears the inscription: “For the company of the brothers Domenico and Antonio Guadanini”. From the heading on the first sheet, one can learn that the folder contains summaries of debts incurred by several Ottoman merchants. These debts were incurred between 1739 and 1770 for goods purchased from the Venetian trading company of the Guadanini brothers. In total, there are sixty-eight individual debts, listed in sequence, and each entry includes date of creation, the debtor’s name and surname, the amount of the debt, and a note stating that witnesses were present at the creation of the document. These documents are known as promissory notes and represent a form of private contractual obligation in which one party – the debtor – acknowledges a debt to another party – the creditor. The business model of such trade companies, such as the Guadanini brothers, was based on record-keeping, making bookkeeping a particularly vital aspect of such a commercial enterprise. All sales and transactions had to be entered into a single ledger or notebook, and it was based on these entries that all the firm’s obligations were settled, debts were paid, and records were kept concerning receivables, market conditions, and prices. However, the documents presented here are not extracts from that company’s book, but rather copies of original documents created for the company’s purposes. It is known only that all debts were taken from the trading agents or broker’s (It. sensali) books – where they had been registered in accordance with all prevailing conditions. That merchants from the Ottoman Balkans purchased textiles from the Guadanini brothers is evident from the promissory notes that are presented here. Among the debtors to the Guadanini brothers, the majority were merchants from Skadar, who signed forty-three promissory notes. The remaining merchants, who undertook to pay, included those from Bosnia – most notably from Sarajevo, but also from Glamoč – followed by traders from Podgorica and Moscopole (in southern Albania). Most conducted trade independently, although some did so as familial associations.

• Details
• Contents