In 'A Stake in the Ground', Michael Schraer explores the economic functions of real estate amongst the Jews of the medieval crown of Aragon. He challenges the view of medieval Jews as primarily money-lenders and merchants, finding compelling evidence for extensive property trading and investment. Jews are found as landlords to Christian tenants, transferring land in dowries, wills and gifts. Property holdings were often extremely valuable. For some, property was a major part of their asset portfolios. Whilst many property transactions were linked to the credit boom, land also acted as a liquid and tradeable investment asset in its own right. This is a key contribution to the economic history of medieval Iberia and of medieval Jews.
Author(s): Michael Schraer
Series: The Medieval and Early Modern Iberian World, 69
Publisher: Brill
Year: 2019
Language: English
Pages: 300
City: Leiden
Acknowledgements vii
List of Figures and Tables viii
Abbreviations x
Orthography xi
Currencies, Land Areas and Weights and Measures xii
Glossary xiv
1. Introduction 1
Part 1. Jews as Property Investors: The Evidence
2. Property Rights 29
3. Jews in the Market for Land 58
4. Lords of the Land? Jews as Rentiers and Cultivators 98
5. Dowries, Wills and Gifts: Property and the Transfer of Wealth 120
6. The Link between Credit and Land 149
Part 2. Property and the Jewish Economy
7. The Economic Case for Property: Asset Choices, Risk and Return 169
8. Credit and Property in the Wealth of the Jews 198
9. Postscript 236
Appendix 1: Currencies and Equivalences 243
Appendix 2: Land Areas, Weights and Measures in the Archival Sources 246
Bibliography 251
Index 270
