Eleanor A. Congdon
(Youngstown State University)

“The Time It Takes:
Notations About the Time
Merchant Letters Take to Reach Their Recipients”

Abstract of Paper
presented at the 59th International Congress on Medieval Studies
(Kalamazoo, 2024)

Session on
“Letters, Couriers, and Post Offices:
Mail in the Medieval World”

Co-Sponsored by Postal History at Kalamazoo
and the Research Group on Manuscript Evidence

Organized by David W. Sorenson

2024 Congress Program

Abstract:

One of the pieces of information which is often found on Italian merchant letters dating from the fifteenth century is a notation by the recipient telling when the letter arrived.  These notices typically are written in the hand of the merchant addressed, not an agent in his house.  They record the amount of time the letter was in transit.  If enough examples survive for a particular route, these notations can be used to determine the average speed of the trip, more leisurely speeds of travel, and exceptionally fast trips.  These, in turn, can be evaluated in relation to events known to be happening in the lands between the origin and destination for how events such as wars affected the merchants sending the letters. Other types of information which are sometimes noted include details of the route, important sites along the way, details about where the recipient is located, and details about ships in the ports to which the letters and merchandise might be consigned.

This paper will look at letters from Venetian merchants doing business with Valencia in the Datini archive from Prato Italy, and a group from the Archivio di Stato di Venezia showing a network of business activities in Syria in the 1480s. These two collections provide many examples of different notations and the information they can provide.

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Note:  We warmly thank Eleanor for her many contributions over the years to RGME Sessions at the ICMS, to our Symposia both in person and online, and to the organization of various events.

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