Textmanuscripts - Les Enluminures
i + 5 + i folios on paper, one watermark, situated mid-leaf at ff. 195, 197, 199: a castle with crenelated tower, Briquet no. 15909 (Naples, 1452), medieval foliation in light brown ink in Arabic numerals [cited in this description], upper fore-edge recto, 195-199, no signatures, missing the final leaf (collation i6 [-1, f. 6, with no loss of text]), no ruling nor lineation (justification, 221-229 x 108-130 mm.), written in a cursive Gothic script (Gothica hybrida libraria) in 48-50 long lines, but 14 lines at f. 199, f. 199v blank, all in brown ink, with occasional spaces left for addition of rubrics or paraphs, enlarged majuscules in brown ink at ff. 195 and 199, black sublineation at f. 196v, header added at upper fore-edge recto of f. 195 in darker brown ink, minor marginal annotations in darker brown ink at ff. 196v and 198, occasional water staining and ink blurring at lower third of each page with no loss of text, unidentifiable blotch at top of f. 199. Enclosed within a stiff bifolium of old washed paper, sewn with undyed thread through three holes, the first leaf invisibly affixed to adjacent bifolium with Japanese rice paper, the whole in an acid-free manila envelope within a pale green folder. In very good condition. Dimensions c.280 x 217-222 mm.
Dealing with the taxation of Corsican wine, the present work was produced by the lawyer Robert de Froncula at the behest of Jacobo d’Appiano, capitano of the Republic of Pisa. Neatly copied in a clear hand in a single gathering (part of a larger manuscript), our manuscript will spark the interest of lawyers, legal and economic historians, and researchers focusing on Renaissance Italian city-states and their wine trade in general and the Corsican wine industry in particular.
1. Manuscript copied in Latin, in Italy, probably Pisa, c.1452 or shortly thereafter based on the evidence of the text, the watermark, plus paleographical evidence.
A date in the 1450s is supported by the watermark visible on ff. 195, 197, and 199: the image, a crenellated tower, matches Briquet no. 15909, produced c.1452 by a mill in Naples. Use of Neapolitan paper in Pisa would not be unusual: Italian scribes sourced fine paper from across Europe. The near-contemporary foliation (195-199) and added heading (f. 195: “De Gabellus…”) suggest our quire was originally part of a much larger codex, likely a compendium of legal rulings.
2. Private Collection.
ff. 195-199v, incipit, “Magnifico domino suo domino Jacobo de appiano capitaneo et defensori populi pisarum ciuitatis militique probatissimo Rubertus [sic] de froncula inter decretorum doc[tor] minimus … Sed cui emptores redditum et fructum ecclesiarum gaudeant dicto priuilegio clericali quod non tenentur soluere gabellum vide glossa in d. c. clericis presenti de censibus que dicitur quod in casu quo clerici non gauderent et cetera nec emptores gaudent et cetera et ibi per glossa et doctores.”
Legal opinion concerning Corsican wine tariffs, in Latin, produced by Robertus de Froncula for Jacobo d’Appiano (1322-10 September 1398); no known edition.
The text of this late medieval booklet asserts that it was produced by the lawyer Robertus de Froncula – who identifies himself in the opening salutation (f. 195, line 2), as well as on the final leaf: “dominus Robertus de froncula decretorum doctor” (Lord Robertus de Froncula, doctor of the Decretum) (f. 199, line 9) – at the behest of the Pisan-born Jacobo d’Appiano. At the time of its composition, Corsican wine merchants were imposing high tariffs on imports; willing to pay only what he deemed fair, d’Appiano apparently sought legal advice from de Froncula. The latter’s opinion, reproduced in our manuscript, cites religious tithing and historical precedents as examples of correct, just taxation.
While little is known about de Froncula, Jacobo d’Appiano (1322-September 10, 1398) was born into a prominent Pisan family and, like his forefathers, pursued a career as a notary, mainly working for the Republic’s administration. By 1352 he had risen to become notary to Pisa’s highest authority, the Anziani (‘Elders’, i.e., consuls), joining their ranks as an Elder in spring 1354. Thereafter he held important public administrative offices in Pisa and in Lucca, including as Chancellor of the Republic of Pisa, occupying the latter position almost continuously for twenty-two years (Banti, 1961). Throughout this career, he maintained close ties with the Visconti, particularly the first Duke of Milan, Gian Galeazzo Visconti (1351-1402) (Gamberini, 2000), and perhaps travelled to Pavia on secret missions for the Pisan government (Banti, 1961).
Since d’Appiano was appointed capitano of the people on October 23, 1392, de Froncula’s legal opinion was written no earlier than that year, but the precise date of its composition remains unclear. The period was one of ongoing tensions for Pisa – especially with Florence which sought possession of Pisa’s strategic ports and seized control of the state early in the next century (Covini, 2000, p. 25) – but also across the broader region. By 1395, war broke out anew (Covini, 2000). It may be that Corsican wine merchants began imposing high tariffs for delivering wine in dangerous territory, with deleterious impacts on the Pisan economy. According to officials of nearby Siena, mercenary raids negatively impacted trade as early as 1394 (Caferro, 2008, p. 201). In such an environment, soliciting a legal opinion from a neutral attorney would have been a sensible step.
Half a century later, in the 1450s, de Froncula’s decision was recopied, yielding our manuscript. The near-contemporary foliation (195-199) and added heading (f. 195: “De Gabellus…”) suggest our quire was originally part of a much larger codex, likely a compendium of legal rulings. This kind of collection, including our text, may have been produced for the edification of law students, but our quire in particular could also have provided urban authorities or merchants with useful legal precedents concerning the importation and sale of wine.
Wine-making in Corsica dates back to the Phoenicians who settled the island and, apart from a brief period of Islamic rule in the seventh and eighth centuries, prohibiting the use of alcohol, Corsica has enjoyed a continuous viticultural tradition. During the period covered by the legal decisions in our manuscript, the Genoese who controlled Corsica established strict laws regarding the wine industry and perhaps the rivalry between Genoa and Pisa during the fourteenth century is reflected in the appeal presented here.
Banti, Ottavio. “Appiani, Iacopo,” Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, vol. 3 (1961), Treccani
https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/iacopo-appiani_(Dizionario-Biografico)/
Caferro, William P. “Warfare and Economy in Renaissance Italy, 1350-1450,” Journal of Interdisciplinary History, 39, no. 2 (2008), pp. 167-209.
Covini, Maria Nadia. “Political and Military Bonds in the Italian State System, Thirteenth to Sixteenth Centuries,” War and Competition Between States, edited by Philippe Contamini, Oxford, 2000, pp. 9–36.
Gamberini, Andrea. “Giàn Galeazzo Visconti, duca di Milano”, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, vol. 54 (2000), Treccani
https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/gian-galeazzo-visconti-duca-di-milano/
TM 1261
