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| 0653 |
The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2 |
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Venetian Money.
The **Mark** of Silver all over Europe may be taken fairly at 2*l.* 4*s.* of our money in modern value; the Venetian mark being a fraction more, and the marks of England, Germany and France fractions less.*
The Venice **Gold Ducat** or **Zecchin**, first coined in accordance
with a Law of 31st October 1283, was, *in our gold value*, worth . . 11·82 *francs.*†
or English . . . . . . . 9*s.* 4·284*d.*
The Zecchin when first coined was fixed as equivalent to 18 *grossi*, and on this calculation the **Grosso** should be a little less than 5*d.* sterling.‡ But from what follows it looks as if there must have been another *grosso*, perhaps only of account, which was only ¼ of the former, therefore equivalent to 3⅓*d.* only. This would be a clue to difficulties which I do not find dealt with by anybody in a precise or thorough manner; but I can find no evidence for it.
Accounts were kept at Venice not in ducats and grossi, but in *Lire*, of which there were several denominations, *viz.*:
1. **Lira dei Grossi**, called in Latin Documents *Libra denariorum Venetorum grossorum.*§ Like every *Lira* or Pound, this consisted of 20 *soldi*, and each *soldo* of 12 *denari* or *deniers.*‖ In this case the Lira was equivalent to 10 golden ducats; and its Denier, as the name implies, was the *Grosse*. The Grosso therefore here was 1/240 of 10 ducats or 1/24 of a ducat, instead of 1/18.
2. **Lira ai Grossi** (*L. den. Ven. ad grossos*). This by decree of 2nd June, 1285, went two to the ducat. In fact it is the *soldo* of the preceding *Lira*, and as such the *Grosso* was, as we have just seen, its denier; which is perhaps the reason of the name.
3. **Lira dei Piccoli** (*L. den. Ven. parvulorum*). The ducat is alleged to have been at first equal to three of these *Lire* (*Romanin*, I. 321); but the calculations of Marino Sanudo (1300-1320) in the *Secreta Fidelium Crucis* show that he reckons the Ducat equivalent to 3·2 *lire* of *piccoli.*¶
In estimating these *Lire* in modern English money, on the basis of their relation to the ducat, we must reduce the apparent value by ¼. We then have:
1. **Lira dei Grossi** equivalent to nearly 3*l.* 15*s.* 0*d.* (therefore exceeding
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731
732
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