This is a collection of additional documents—beyond sales, leasing, insurance, and manumission contracts—relating to enslaved men and women enacted in the late medieval and early modern Mediterranean.
The slaveholder from Catalonia named Juan de Villamare manumits an enslaved baptized Muslim from Alexandria named Giovanni Francesco with the condition that the formerly enslaved Giovanni Francesco serve Giovanni de Villamare for a term of three years. Giovanni explicitly renounces the right of patronage.
The slaveholder named Niccolò de Orlandis manumits an enslaved Circassian woman named Lucia under the condition that the formerly enslaved Lucia serve him for a subsequent term of two years. Niccolò renounces the right of patronage. The enslaved Lucia is absent during the manumission and is represented by the enacting notary Piero de Roncionibus. An undated addendum to the contract notes that Lucia eventually served in the household of Sandra de Orlandis, the daughter of Niccolò, until her death.
The Officium mercantie pronounces a sentence regarding an enslaved Tatar woman sold by Niccolò Castagna to the notary Giovanni de Cucurno. Niccolò appealed to the Officium and claimed that Giovanni had not paid for the transaction. Giovanni argued that the enslaved woman was actually purchased from Giorgio Castagna, not Niccolò, with conditions. When she arrived at the home of Giovanni she began to protest vehemently, crying and threatening to hang herself. Because of this Giovanni felt that she should be returned to Giorgio and that he not have to pay. After hearing the testimony of various parties, the Officium pronounced in favor of the defendant Giovanni.
This is a sentence delivered by the eight officials of the Officium mercantie on the sale by Agostino de Gropallo of an enslaved Tatar woman named Maddalena, who was described as being pregnant, to the merchant named Lanfranco Cicogna. The sale was made under the condition that if Maddalena was unable to sufficiently serve as a wet nurse for Lanfranco within 15 days of the exchange, then he would be able to return her to Agostino and receive his payment back. Lanfanco claimed that Maddalena was not able to adequately serve as a wet nurse, while Agostino claimed that she was and that Lanfranco was unlawfully backing out of the contract. The Officium mercantie, after hearing the evidence, declared the sale to be void. The appellant Agostino was represented by his father Manfredo during the hearing. At the time of sale the defendant Lanfranco was represented by the merchant named Niccolò de Novaria.
The slaveholder and commercial broker named Giacomo de Bargalio pledges the title for an enslaved Circassian woman named Margarita, who is approximately 33 years of age, as collateral for 150 Genoese lire which he owes to a certain Simone Ferro.
The slaveholder and silk merchant named Bernardo de Capriata returns to Battista de Santo Nazario an enslaved Circassian woman named Marta, who had been leased to him for wet-nursing, on account that the enslaved Marta was unable to nurse for his child. Battista returns to Bernardo a measure of fustian cloth valued at 11 Genoese lire that he had provided as a partial payment for the lease.
The arbitrators named Paolo Lercari and Andrea de Allegro issue a sentence in favor of the slaveholder named Eliana Grimaldi, who had sold an enslaved woman named Marteta to a barber from Chiavari named Giovanni Vivolo. The arbitrators rule that Giovanni must pay the price of 28 Genoese florins to Eliana for the enslaved Maria, despite the fact that she was sick, because the original sales contract had waived any guarantee regarding the health of the enslaved Maria. Eliana was represented in the contract by her son-in-law Gherardo Usodimare.
The slaveholder named Urbano Marchesano manumits an enslaved Tatar woman name Lucia, whom he had earlier purchased from the heirs of the deceased Paolo de Valegia for an unspecified sum. The enslaved Lucia agrees to work as a servant for Urbano and this agreement is enacted in a subsequent contract.
The formerly enslaved Sofia, who had been manumitted by a certain Pietra de Costa earlier in the day, acknowledges a debt of 40 Geneose lire to Eliano Becchignone (who would later enter the Centurione albergo and assume their surname). She promises to repay the debt within four years or work as a household servant for Eliano and his family for four years if she is unable to pay the debt.
This contract is the ratification of the sale of an enslaved Russian woman named Caterina, who is approximately 21 years of age, to a certain Matteo Centurione, for 140 Genoese lire. The enslaved Caterina was held by Cipriano de Mari, who was absent during the transaction and was represented by his spouse Argenta Lomellini.
This contract is a sentence upon which two arbitrators pronounce on some vices of an enslaved person who had been sold by Niccolò Marchione to Ottaviano Cattaneo.
This item relates to the controversy between Andrea de Passano and a merchant from Biscay named Miguel Navaro regarding the legality of the sales of two enslaved Russians, an 18 year woman named Anna and a 15 year child named Giovanni.
The slaveholder and commercial broker named Niccolò Sofia acknowledges the payment of 97 lire and 10 soldi of Genoese currency for an enslaved Russian woman named Marta, who is approximately 30 years old, whom he had sold to a cloth merchant named Bartolomeo Boecio. Niccolò is represented in the transaction by his brother Bartolomeo Sofia, who serves as his procurator by the power of a contract enacted by the notary Niccolò Garumbero.
The formerly enslaved Bulgarian woman named Caterina, who had just been manumitted by the slaveholder Linò Cattaneo, promises to serve Linò and her daughter Speciosa Cicala for the remainder of their lifetimes.
The enslaved Circassian servant named Giorgio agrees to pay 31 Genoese lire to his former holder named Emanuele Cattaneo within the next six-and-a-half years as a redemption for his manumission which is mandated to occur in five-and-a-half years after his term of service to Battista Calvo.
The slaveholder and shoemaker named Bartolomeo Parisola manumits an enslaved Bulgarian woman named Lucia, who is approximately 22 years of age, with the enslaved Lucia agreeing to serve Bartolomeo for an additional seven years as a condition of manumission. Lucia was absent during the manumission and was represented by the enacting notary Antonio de Facio. Bartolomeo retains the right of patronage. The contract was twice extracted.
The slaveholder named Luca Gentile manumits an enslaved Circassian man named Giorgio, who is approximately 25 years of age, under the condition that he completes his previously contracted three-year term of service to the lawyer Giacomo de Leone, which began over a week earlier, on 12 June 1433. Luca retains the right of patronage. The contract was twice extracted.
A formal agreement and quittance concerning the leasing and exchange of two enslaved women between Giovanni de Mulassana and Gabriel Rissotto. The contract notes that an enslaved woman named Lucia had been leased by Giovanni to Gabriele for an unspecified term and total cost of 40 Genoese lire for the purpose of wet-nursing, and that another unnamed enslaved woman was leased by Gabriele to Giovanni to replace Lucia in the household of Giovanni. The contract notes that Lucia is currently pregnant and that Giovanni acknowledges her pregnancy and assumes all risks and expenses related to her pregnancy, including insurance, and releases both parties from further claims and obligations.
The formerly enslaved woman named Maddalena agrees to work as a servant to Luchina Castagna, a nun in the monastery of Sant'Agata de Ponte in the Bisagno Valley, for a term of three years to repay a debt to a baker named Giovanni, known as Fonte Aghuso, who had arranged to pay the slaveholder Francesco Spinola secure her freedom. Luchina agrees to pay Giovanni the sum of 19 Genoese lire for the three year term. The contracts stipulates that if Maddalena can remit the 19 lire before the end of the three-year term then she will be released from service, and if she serves at least one year, then she can be released from service by paying a proportional amount of the debt. The nature of the contract suggests that Giovanni had agreed to pay Francesco 16 lire for the manumission of Maddalena and, acting as her custodian, arranged for her service in the monastery for which he charged an extra 3 lire for expenses. There may have also been a conjugal relationship between Giovanni and Maddalena.
The slaveholders named Giacomo Spinola and Giovanni de Dandedeo accept the arbitration decision regarding the illness of an enslaved woman sold by Giacomo to Giovanni.
The slaveholder named Gaspare Doria consigns an enslaved Abkhazan woman named Margarita, who is approximately 18 years of age, as part of a commenda contract. A merchant from Nice named Giovanni Litard will take the enslaved Margarita, along with another enslaved woman, to sell in Mallorca, for one-quarter of the proceeds.
An enslaved woman named Anastasia, who is approximately 26 years of age, is given in "accomenda" for one-quarter of the profit by a belt-maker named Giacomo Alessio to Urbano de Simone, from Finale, so she can be sold anywhere.
The slaveholder from Pera named Andrea de Corrado manumits an enslaved Ruthenian woman named Marta, who is approximately 24 years of age. The enslaved Marta agrees to serve Francesco Pallavicini for a term of five years as a condition of manumission from whom Andrea receives the sum of 75 ducats of Chios. The contract is structured in a manner that both Andrea and Francesco are named as the persons giving the manumission. The transcript is incomplete (possibly due to damage).
The slaveholder named Battista de Vignano donates an enslaved Bosnian woman named Caterina to his nephew Teramo to compensate him for his services. The enslaved Caterina will be manumitted upon the death of Teramo.
The recently manumitted Manouil Moraito, who is now described as a dyer, agrees to serve in the dying workshop of Diego de Sibilla as long as Diego remains on the Island of Chios. Diego agrees to give ⅓ of his profits to Diego and is prohibited from teaching the craft to anyone in Chios.
