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Strapazzo delle polizze (Drafts of monetary transfers)

There are no references to Jewish people in the series.
All the series of the fonds Apolitiae have not been fully researched and it is very difficult to establish the connection between them. The only possible connection found so far is to the documents of the Apolitiae series (HR-DADU-45.1). For each entry in the Apolitiae series a certain number is recorded indicating the existence of a more detailed description of the type of compensation made to state employees of the Dubrovnik Republic at the end of the 17th century, and in certain periods of the 18th century.

Apolitiae onerum; Polizze di caricho (Bills of lading)

There is no reference to any Jew in the series.
The series consists of only one volume in which bills of lading are bound. The receipts are in a printed form with the following information: date of loading the goods on the ship, names of traders to whom the goods belonged, type of goods, name of the ship's captain, type and name of the ship, destination of the ship and names of traders who would receive the goods.

Litterae et commissiones Levantis; Lettere di Levante (State letters and instructions to the Eastern countries)

The series contains state letters and instructions to Ragusan ambassadors, tribute ambassadors, consuls, administrators of Dubrovnik consulates, charges d’affairs, and merchants in the cities of the Ottoman Empire in the period from the middle of the 14th to the beginning of the 19th century. The cities that are mostly referred to in the series are: Istanbul, Jedrene, Belgrade, Vlora, Volos, Alexandria, Banja Luka, Sarajevo, Travnik, Mostar and Pljevlja. The series also includes letters from the authorities of the Dubrovnik Republic to various Ottoman dignitaries and officials, from Grand Viziers in Istanbul to kadis in the Dubrovnik neighbourhood.


The series is very important for the research of the history of the Jewish people in the Ottoman Empire, as well as for any attempted analysis of their cooperation with the Jews from the Republic. The series contains state letters to the consuls of the Republic in Vlora, who were Jewish (16th and 17th centuries). The following names of the consuls are referenced: Isach Trincha, who is only referenced to in one letter (vol. 20, f. 15v), Jacob Coduto, Daniel Coduto, Zacharia Graziano, Angiolo Coduto (vol. 28-34, 37, 42-45, 47-50). In addition to the names previously mentioned, there are several other Vlora Jews that are mentioned in the documents from the 16th century. The series also contains several letters from the authorities of the Republic to their tribute ambassadors, in which there are references to Gracia Mendes. In 1552, she travelled to Istanbul via Dubrovnik. The data shows that she conducted her business from Istanbul, using the port of Dubrovnik to trade with Western countries till she died. The ambassadors of the Republic would regularly visit her and bring her letters from the authorities. According to the records, she would lend money to the ambassadors and the authorities of the Republic would then reimburse the money to her representatives in Dubrovnik, Isaac Ergas and Abner Alfarin (vol. 26-29). Other Istanbul Jews also lent money to Dubrovnik tax collectors, and the authorities would then reimburse it to their relatives in Dubrovnik. For example, in 1576, Samuel Ergas wrote a letter of recommendation to two Jews from Istanbul, Judi Algasi and Samuel Celef, asking them to lend money to the emissaries of the Republic if that was deemed necessary (vol. 33, f. 67v). Dubrovnik merchants owned real estate in some Ottoman cities and would often rent it, especially in Sofia, to Jewish merchants. Related to this fact, there are several references to conflicts that occurred among those merchants. Even though the series provides evidence to some other conflicts in which Jewish merchants were involved, it also provides evidence of different forms of successful cooperation with Jewish merchants. The authorities of the Dubrovnik Republic evidently cooperated with Jewish merchants who were influential at the sultan's court (e.g., vol. 31, ff. 25v-26v). One of those merchants, Conort, whose name is not referenced in this series, worked in the 80s of the 18th century as a dragoman of Dubrovnik ambassadors at the Sublime Porte (vol. 103, ff. 113v, 121v).

Litterae Officii navigationis; Lettere dell'Offizio della Navigazione (Official letters from the Maritime Office)

The series contains official letters from the mid-18th century to the early 19th century sent by the Maritime Office to consuls and representatives of the Dubrovnik Republic in Italian, Ottoman, African, Spanish, and Portuguese ports. Due to a new increase of maritime affairs in the Republic at that time, the Republic of Dubrovnik had established about 80 consular offices in these ports. The series also contains circular letters and instructions to Ragusan sea captains, to all consuls of the Republic, and specifically to all consuls in the Ottoman Empire and to all consuls in the countries in the Western Mediterranean parts of Europe.


The series contains a small number of letters sent to Jewish people by the officials of the Maritime Office. Among those people, in the second half of the 18th century, there are references to the administrators of the consulates of the Dubrovnik Republic in Algeria, Abram and Raphael Jacob Bussara, (e.g., vol. 8, f. 3). There is also another reference to Abram Aruch, who was responsible for Ragusan ships in Alexandria at the time when there was no Dubrovnik consul in the city (vol. 1, f. 110).

Arboratica; Arboraggi; Arboracci (Maritime tax arboratica)

The maritime tax arboratica (Latin _arbo_r: wood, i.e., mast) was mentioned for the first time in the Dubrovnik Statute from 1272. Initially, this tax was paid only by foreign ships that used the port of Dubrovnik, and later it had to be paid also by domestic ships with a carrying capacity of more than 10 carrus (carrus: car, approximately 1900 kg). The tax arboratica was calculated according to the afore-mentioned unit of measurement for the carrying capacity of the ship and was paid to the treasury of the Maritime Office. The payment of this tax represented a type of constant state revenue which the Republic invested in the development of maritime affairs. The preserved books of payments of the tax arboratica date from the end of the 16th century to the beginning of the 19th century.


The series is very important for researching the history of the involvement of Dubrovnik Jews in maritime affairs of the Republic in the 18th century. Many payments made by Jews were recorded in the books arboratica. The payments recorded indicate that the Jews in those books were referred to either as leaseholders of the tax arboratica or as co-owners of the ships. In years 1803-1806 the recorded data show that Jews fully took over the responsibility for collection of payment of this tax. Therefore, during that period only Jews were referenced as taxpayers. In one of the books from 1806, it is even specified that the list of tax debtors was entrusted to Jews for collection of arboratica (vol. 16, without numbering). The books of this series reference to Jews from Jewish Ragusan families such as Ambonetti, Campos, Coen, Levi, Levi Mandolfo, Luzzena, Maestro, Pardo, Russo, Tolentino, Valenzin, Vitali.

Apolitiae depositorum; Polize di depositi (Monetary deposits)

There are no references to the Jewish people in the series.
The series contains registers of monetary deposits to the treasurers and legal representatives of the Cathedral. These transactions were either bequeathed to certain persons or were of some other origin (for example: references of payments of state revenue from taxes on wine trade). The first volume is entitled Libro de deposito osia versamento di denari in mani di Tesorieri et Procuratori di Santa Maria per titolo di legati e d'altri provenienti. The books cover the period from the end of the 16th to the beginning of the 19th century.

Provedimenta navigationis; Provedimenti della navigazione (Terms of navigation)

There are no references to Jewish people in this series.
After a new increase of the maritime affairs in the Dubrovnik Republic in the 40s of the 18th centuries, basic provisions for navigation were published in a so-called Book of Rules on National Navigation (Regolamenti della Republica di Ragusa per la navigazione nazionale; 1745). Over time, these provisions changed and were supplemented. This series, which consists of one volume, contains the Senate's provisions on navigation adopted for the period between 1745 and 1806 and specify working conditions of sea captains and crew members, working conditions of Dubrovnik consuls in the Ottoman ports, conditions for obtaining a citizenship of the Dubrovnik Republic, conditions for the navigation outside of the Adriatic, payments of port, customs and other maritime taxes, and conditions for the construction of new ships. The provisions of the Maritime Office for the period 1747 - 1804 were written a tergo.

Patenta, Concessiones navigationis et Renovationes concessionum; Patenti, Congedi, Proroghe dei Bastimenti (Permits for navigating beyond the Adriatic Sea)

Ragusan sea captains that sailed on the ships of the Republic had to have a document called patente for legal navigation. They also needed a special license (congedo) to navigate beyond the Adriatic Sea, which was usually issued for a period of three and a half years. The consent to extend that permit was called a proroga and was usually issued for a period of six months. In the first volume of this series the records show different prorogas which were issued on the basis of congedos in the period from 1744 to 1807. On the left page of the book, congedos are recorded, and on the right page, prorogas. The format is the following: Antonio Brateglich Capitano del Brighentino nominato S. Catterina ha avuto il primo Congedo per tre anni e sei mesi di rispetto da computarsi dal adi 10 Marzo 1799 (left page); Ad istanza di Reuben Vita Ambonetti adi 27 Giugno 1802 avuta la proroga in iscritto per sei mesi dallo spirare del contranotto primo congedo, cosiche li scorrono li quatro anni (right page; vol. 1, ff. 9v, 10). The second volume of this series contains documents patenti and congedi.


The first volume of this series is important for researching the role of Jews in maritime affairs of the Dubrovnik Republic. Requests for the extension of the permit to sail outside the Adriatic were requested by the co-owners of the ships, among whom there was a large number of Ragusan Jews from different families such as Ambonetti, Costantini, Levi Mandolfo, Maestro, Pardo, Terni, Tolentino.

Ruoli (Popisi brodskih posada i vlasnika brodova/ Lists of crews and shipowners)

When leaving Dubrovnik, sea captains were obliged to hand over to the Office of Maritime Affairs the list of crew members. It was also mandatory to list the names of co-owners of the ships. The ownership of the ship was divided into 24 shares (karats). The value of one share was between 100 to 1600 ducats of the Ragusan ducats depending on the age, size, and equipment of the ship. The co-owners of the ship, that had to be identified by the captain of the ship in the Office for Maritime Affairs, were obliged to testify under oath and declare the exact number of shares in their ownership. All this information was recorded in specialized books called Ruoli. Preserved Ruoli books contain data for the period from the mid-18th century to the early 19th century, and only some years of that period are missing.


This series is very important for the research of the maritime affairs of Dubrovnik Jews in the 18th century because the existing data give evidence that almost all Jews were co-owners of Ragusan ships. Therefore, references to many Ragusan Jewish families, such as Ambonetti, Barafael, Campos, Costantini, Conort, Janni, Levi, Levi Mandolfo, Luzzena, Maestro, Pardo, Russi, Terni, Tolentino, Valenzin, Venturra, Vitali can be found in the archival material. The data also show that it was extremely rare that the co-owners of the ships were Jews who did not reside in the Dubrovnik Republic. One of those rare cases refer to a Jew by the name of Danon, from Sarajevo (vol. 1, f. 4). Most Jews owned between one half of the share to 3 shares in one or more ships. Less common are those cases in which Jews owned the half of one ship or more (12 shares) (e.g., vol. 1, f. 81). The data also show that Ragusan Jews very rarely owned the entire ship, which was recorded in the fonds Diversa de Foris (HR-DADU-30).

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