Contract for the transport of 3 loads of saffron and three loads of skins from Manresa to Paris within 32 days.

Date: 1334

Archive: County Archive of Bages

Document type: Textual

Reference code: CAT-ACBG-30-125-4064

Link to the archive

Description: In 1334, a contract was formalized for the transport of three loads of saffron and three loads of skins from Manresa to Paris, with a delivery time of 32 days. This document is a privileged window into the commercial routes that linked Catalonia with the great economic centers of northern Europe, such as Paris, Bruges or other cities in Flanders. Saffron, a product of great value, and skins, an essential raw material, were key commodities in the Manresa and Catalan economy. This contract reflects the logistical capacity, the trust in the written word and the integration of Catalonia in international commercial networks. It is a testimony to the mobility of goods, people and capital in an increasingly interconnected medieval Europe, where cities like Manresa played an active role in the construction of a common economic space.

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