Historians have traditionally viewed the last two centuries of the early modern period as a crisis era for Italian states. However, recent studies have revised this view, revealing that during this period, Italy’s economy displayed significant vitality and dynamism despite losing its continental leadership. Yet, this revisionist perspective has not fully permeated the historiography of consumption and material culture. Through meticulous research based on a broad array of empirical evidence, primarily unpublished documents housed at the Venetian State Archive, this study challenges the traditional narrative of material decline. By analyzing household budgets, our study demonstrates that Venetian consumption was not stagnant or in decline; rather, it was characterized by a high degree of flexibility, highlighting a vibrant and adaptable material culture.
Mattia Viale is postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Padova. His research concentrates on material living standards, social mobility, and labour dynamics in the Republic of Venice between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. He is the author of Stocks and flows: Material culture and consumption behaviour in early modern Venice (c. 1650-1800), “The Economic History Review”, 74.2, 2024.
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