Pegolotti Pratica Ricc.2441 specimen half page. Francesco Balducci Pegolotti ( fl. 1290 – 1347), also Francesco di Balduccio, was a Florentine merchant and politician.

Life

His father, Balduccio Pegolotti, represented Florence in commercial negotiations with

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

in 1311. His brother, Rinieri di Balduccio, was suspected of connivance in the disappearance of a gold shipment in 1332. Francesco Pegolotti himself was a businessman in the service of the

Compagnia dei Bardi The Compagnia dei Bardi was a Florentine banking and trading company which was started by the Bardi family, and which became one of the major medieval “super-companies” of the 14th Century. History The Bardi company was one of three major F ...

, and in this capacity he was at Antwerp from 1315 (or earlier) to 1317. He was a director of the

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

office from 1317 to 1321, and is recorded (as Balduch) as having dealt directly with King Edward II. He was in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

from 1324 to 1327, and again in 1335. In 1324 at Famagusta he negotiated a reduction of customs duties for the Compagnia dei Bardi and for those identified as Florentine merchants by the Bardi representative in the city. In 1335 he obtained from the

King of Armenia This is a list of the monarchs of Armenia, for more information on ancient Armenia and Armenians, please see History of Armenia. For information on the medieval Armenian Kingdom in Cilicia, please see the separate page Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia. ...

a grant of privileges for Florentine trade. In 1331 and again in 1342 he was involved in Florentine politics as a ''Gonfalionere di Compagnia''; in 1346 he held a higher position, ''Gonfalionere di Giustizia''. In 1347, when the Compagnia dei Bardi collapsed, Pegolotti was among those who dealt with the consequences of the bankruptcy.

Works

Between 1335 and 1343 he compiled the work for which he is famous, the ''Book of Descriptions of Countries and of Measures Employed in Business'' ( it, Libro di divisamenti di paesi e di misuri di mercatanzie e daltre cose bisognevoli di sapere a mercatanti), commonly known as the '' Practice of Commerce'' ('). Beginning with a glossary of Italian and foreign terms then in use in trade, the ''Practice'' next describes nearly all the major trading cities then known to

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

merchants; the imports and exports of various regions; the business customs prevalent in each of those regions; and the comparative value of coinages, weights and measures. The most distant trade route described by Pegolotti is that from

Azov Azov (russian: Азов), previously known as Azak, is a town in Rostov Oblast, Russia, situated on the Don River just from the Sea of Azov, which derives its name from the town. Population: History Early settlements in the vicinity The mout ...

via

Astrakhan Astrakhan ( rus, Астрахань, p=ˈastrəxənʲ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in Southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the ...

, Khiva,

Otrar Otrar or Utrar ( kk, Отырар, ''Otyrar'', otəˈɾɑɾ otk, 𐰚𐰭𐱃𐰺𐰢𐰣, Keŋü Tarman), also called Farab, is a Central Asian ghost town that was a city located along the Silk Road in Kazakhstan. Otrar was an important town ...

and Kulja to

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

. He also details the route from Ayas on the

Cilicia Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from the northeastern coa ...

n coast of Turkey via

Sivas Sivas (Latin and Greek: ''Sebastia'', ''Sebastea'', Σεβάστεια, Σεβαστή, ) is a city in central Turkey and the seat of Sivas Province. The city, which lies at an elevation of in the broad valley of the Kızılırmak river, is ...

Erzingan Erzincan (; ku, Erzîngan), historically Yerznka ( hy, Երզնկա), is the capital of Erzincan Province in Eastern Turkey. Nearby cities include Erzurum, Sivas, Tunceli, Bingöl, Elazığ, Malatya, Gümüşhane, Bayburt, and Giresun. The city is ...

and

Erzerum Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...

Tabriz Tabriz ( fa, تبریز ; ) is a city in northwestern Iran, serving as the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. It is the List of largest cities of Iran, sixth-most-populous city in Iran. In the Quri Chay, Quru River valley in Iran's historic Aze ...

in Persia.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pegolotti, Francesco Balducci Italian male writers Italian bankers Medieval economics 14th-century deaths Year of birth unknown 13th-century Italian businesspeople 14th-century Italian businesspeople