Here is another couple of findings from Franco's search through inventories of minors' inheritances. Again, comments in brackets are mine, and Franco has corrected some errors.

Florence 1472-1474. Worn-out naibi and triumphs in a bag

Franco Pratesi

1. Introduction

I present here the results of a short study which can be considered an appendix to a much longer investigation in the same collection of the State Archives of Florence (ASFi). The section is that of the Magistracy of Minors before the Principality, which I probed again recently. In particular, I have already reported the news of two packs of naibi on sale in Ponsacco in 1421 together with various ceramics, [note 1] and of one pack found in 1426 in the Vecchietti house. [note 2] For me, finding the record of the second case indicated was like reaching a long-established goal, after which I could finish the search without regrets. Instead, I found myself “returning to the scene of the crime,” to examine a couple more registers from that same series of Samples and Revised Data.

Here I report on two findings in a register studied recently, and for any other details I refer to the two previous studies cited. In this case, following Inventory N/60 of the ASFi, we find: No. 172, Sample of inventories and revised data, Quarters of S. Spirito and S. Croce, from 1467 to 1475. The book has the usual large size of royal [reale, roughly = metric A3 or 11x17 inches] sheets and the usual thickness of a dozen centimeters. Curiously, they restored the register, pleasantly enriching it with a heavy leather binding with metal studs, which, from the back, partially goes up to the front with two closing bands or straps. Incredibly, however, the binding was fixed upside down so that upon opening, the last pages of the register are found upside down, thus ruining all the value of the work.

2. The worn-out naibi

The Naibi are met on folio 249v. We had already seen that meeting naibi in a private home was an extremely rare occasion. Here, after the first exceptional case, a second one immediately presents itself. Maybe the rarity wasn't so marked then? I do not think so. However, in this case, the inheritance is indicated as that of Franciescho di Nicholaio Biliotti; we are in Florence, and the year is now 1472, already a full generation after the Vecchietti pack, practically an entire century since Naibi had arrived in the city. Let us see what we read in the relevant part of the inventory of household goods. ASFi, Magistracy of Minors before the Principality, No. 172, f. 249v
(Reproduction prohibited)

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1. https://www.naibi.net/A/CURRADO.pdf
2. https://www.naibi.net/A/VECCHIETTI.pdf


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1 cupboard cloth
2 pieces of cupboard cloths
12 pairs of old underwear and several fabric socks
3 mended napkins and 1 with holes
29 pillowcases of several sizes with nets and without nets
8 hand towels of several sizes
1 women's handkerchief
12 napkins of various sizes, both good and worn-out
1 children's shirt and 1 piece of linen fabric with several rags
1 little mattress for a small bed a bordo [near a wall or a big bed?]
1 pair of much-used naibi or playing cards [paio di naibi overo charte da giuchare tristi]
4 tin plates…
4 tin plates…
13 small tin bowls…
17 tin bowls…
3 tin plates…
1 pair of spurs
1 children's small harpsichord

Obviously, we are only interested in one line in particular of the inventory, but even the nearby lines are very useful for identifying the context of the conservation of the playing cards, evidently among objects reserved for family use, all of which are of no particular value. The same line of greatest interest contains more useful information.

To begin with, the adjective triste [literally “sad”] sounds curious today, because no one uses the term with that meaning anymore. Imagining discontented or desperate playing cards today would make one think of extravagant fairy tales with flights of fancy that here are completely off-topic. In fact, the same adjective is also found a few lines above this entry, and moreover, it is encountered very often in these inventories. The meaning in these cases is “worn out, used up, become barely usable.” This reporting is very important because it directly affects the commercial value of the object, and it must not be forgotten that these are inventories of household goods within a complete economic evaluation of the inheritance to be administered. Therefore it is more than logical that it is reported when an object presents itself with a value reduced to only a fraction of what it could have been worth even when used if still in good condition.

The double name of the cards [naibi, charte da giuchare] remains, and this is also an important fact. The terms separated by “or” [overo] might seem like a normal repetition, inserted for greater clarity, but in my opinion they are not. They would have been many years before, when the two terms could really have been synonymous. [note 3] I think that in those years, if it had been new playing cards, they would no longer have been called naibi, but everyone would have called them only “playing cards,” carte da giu/o/care. But those in the inventory are not new cards; they are old and badly damaged, and in my opinion they are also of a type that is no longer in circulation - and if by chance you see them, they are cards with which only a few grandparents can still play.

I recognize that the above is just my idea, not based on certain data, but what convinces me is the fact that it is not the first time I have come across such a lexical combination. Also in a previous study, the terms were encountered together, whether of decks of playing cards or odd naibi, in 1462. [note 4] And then the interpretation of one circumstance ends up confirming that of the other.

Why then was there the need, or at least the usefulness, of using a double name? Because those cards were naibi, but whoever saw them for the first time needed confirmation, as if they were saying:
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3. Some examples (1407-1429) in F. Pratesi, Giochi di carte nella repubblica fiorentina, Arachne 2016, pp. 209-211. https://www.naibi.net/A/503-CAP400-Z.pdf
4. https://www.naibi.net/A/CORSELLINI.pdf.

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"even these cards called naibi, with their own pictures, were used as playing cards, exactly like those of today."

This is the second deck of naibi found in a private home among the hundreds in which inventories of household goods were compiled for inheritance reasons in the fifteenth century. The hypothesis that, for one reason or another, none could be found had already been discredited by the first discovery. Going from one to two decks now is not a very significant progress, also because almost half a century has passed from the first to the second; however, if nothing else, the fact is also confirmed that it was not by strange chance that the first deck was found together with objects of little value.

3. Triumphs in a bag

If finding a second pack of naibi in an inventory from half a century later could not arouse great surprise, the same register has reserved another one for us: in an inventory registered on f. 313v, we encounter the first deck of triumphs in an ordinary house!
In this case, the legacy is that of Brano di Nicholo Gherardini (or similar surname) of Florence. As usual, below is a reproduction of the text and the transcription of the part of interest. ASFi, Magistracy of Minors before the Principality, No. 172, f. 313v
(Reproduction prohibited)

1 local hand towel . . . with holes
1 local hand towel with holes . . .
1 Parisian-style hand towel
1 white Neapolitan blanket with more holes
1 pair of triumphs in a bag
6 used shabby overcoats for men
7 pairs of used men's underwear
1 pillow covered with taffeta of Brano
1 Milanese knife with black handle

That old naibi could be found in the company of objects of little value could no longer arouse a strong surprise to us. Here, however, we find a pack of triumphs next to holey linens and seven pairs of used underwear!

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To be able to include it in the list of precious tarot cards preserved by the ducal courts, at least the bag containing them would have to have been made of brocade, with gold threads and gems incorporated into a very luxurious decoration. However, it is much more realistic to instead admit that at that time even triumphs were objects of common use, so much so that only when new, and perhaps in versions with more careful workmanship, could they maintain a certain commercial value.

In my opinion, triumphs in Florence were not luxury objects even at the beginning, precisely because they spread in the same environment as Florentine card makers and players who certainly had no intention of spending fortunes on objects intended for consumption characterized by very quick depreciation. In the case in question, there was no longer even a possible push of fashion or novelty: by now a good generation had passed since triumphs had been introduced into players’ use.

If I can advance another personal opinion, I would say that it is a great disappointment that this bag did not reach us with the pack of triumphs inside; today it would in fact have been very useful for setting certain limits to the endless discussions on the extraordinary tarot cards that have reached us from the ducal courts.

4. Conclusions

When I thought I had concluded the research on possible decks of naibi preserved in private homes in Florence and the surrounding area, I continued a little further, tracing a second deck of naibi in Florence in 1472 and even a deck of triumphs in 1474. In both cases, it clearly dealt with everyday objects. The triumphs were simply stored in a bag, among used linen. For the old Naibi, the term, which has been in use for some time, of playing cards, is added. Ultimately, they were rarely inventoried items, but of little value.

Florence, 02.23.2024

Here is another translation, this time of one done in April. At least I am getting it done the same month. I have skipped quite a few in between. As usual, Franco has reviewed the translation and made important suggestions. I have added in brackets some comments that may assist the Italian-deprived reader. The original is at https://www.naibi.net/A/BOTTEGA.pdf.

Florence 1736-1737. Accounts of the shop of the abbot

Franco Pratesi

1. Introduction
Here we examine an unusual book of accounts, in which the income and expenses of a shop are recorded monthly for one year; it is a shop that presents itself as both a coffee shop and a "citrus-water-dealer," as sellers of orangeade and similar drinks were called in the eighteenth century. We do not know if the shop was located within the city of Florence, as seems probable, but it was certainly located in Florentine territory. What makes these accounts particularly interesting for us is the fact that cards and other games were played in the shop; we can therefore render an account of the contribution of gaming to management profits, which does not happen frequently.

2. The account book

The book in question is preserved in the collection Books of Commerce and Family of the State Archives of Florence (ASFi). In Inventory N/422 of this collection, the register is described as follows.

Number: 622
Name: Boncinelli / Balestrieri
Date: 1736-1737
Title attributed: Journal of income and outflow for gaming and administration of drinks kept by Filippo Balestrieri, cashier
Original title: “Income and outflow”
External appearance: Register cm. 30.5x21.2 97 pages, of which pp. 4-33, 41-97 are blank. Parchment portfolio binding [where the bottom overlaps the top and is usually closed by a knot in a ribbon]; guard sheets [end pages, of rougher material to protect what is inside]; soft leather laces

As you can see, it is an entire book dedicated to this administration, but most of the pages have remained blank: two distinct parts are found to have been written: at the beginning, five pages for revenue, and after the middle of the book, thirteen pages for expenses.

It was possible to transcribe the contents of the account book in full, thanks to a summary that made it possible to include the data in two tables, one for income and one for expenses. Notes have been added to indicate the few cases of records with additional content compared to the standard form adopted for individual entries.


3. Income register

For each entry, a typical formula is repeated, which is obviously lost in the table. For example, the July 31st gaming entry reads as follows. From Game surpluses and deficits, seventy lire which so much has been received this month from the cash box of Game takings. Or the entry of April 30th for drinks: From various drinks on our account, six hundred and fifty-nine lire, so much received from the shop's box for the daily takings in the present month.

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4. Outflow register

The outflow register is richer and more complex. In order to summarize the contents of the book relating to the releases in a subsequent table, I deemed it necessary to adopt a system of abbreviations, listed in the following table. For each entry in the book, in addition to the goods indicated by the acronyms, the list ends with and others, making one think of small secondary purchases present, or in any case possible. [In what follows, the mmdd format– month-day - is Franco’s, to make clear the succession of months; the original has the day first, i.e., ddmm.]
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5. The people involved

The management of the shop arouses some curiosity. Based on the monthly payments, the functionary Filippo Balestrieri stands out from the other employees, referred to as boys [here in the sense of assistants]. Balestrieri appears as the cashier, but also directly follows the purchases and participates in the management. The boy with the highest salary is fired early on, perhaps due to some shortcoming, perhaps only to replace him with one with a lower salary. Boncinelli has an unclearly defined role as manager: he does not receive a salary, and it is not clear to what extent he participates in the activity and the related profits. The uncertainty in this regard is very large; in short, at most, this Giuseppe Boncinelli could have been the main manager of the shop and the real manufacturer of the drinks, carrying out the appropriate and profitable mixing of the many raw materials purchased.

On the other hand, the role of Abbot Giuseppe Antonio Biliotti is quite clear, even if it is not, or should not be, the typical role of a Catholic abbot: it is he who provides the initial capital to start the business! Games included. It is not very important to know whether this investment will then be compensated by interest on the loan or by a fraction of the profits, or by both sources. Considering his title, the daily presence of the abbot in the management of the shop appears unlikely.

It is worth looking for information about this abbot in other sources. We do not find him among the authors in the bibliographical repertoires: he was evidently not committed to publishing religious or even literary works. However, by inserting his name into Google Books we can trace him back to an Edict in which we also find him interested in Redeemable Bonds; in 1727, the extraction of his name [in a lottery] allows him to withdraw the sum of a thousand scudi for his ten policies. [Note 16]

Even more interesting, however, is another piece of information, which can again be found in the ASFi. In the Magistracy of Minors of the Principality, an entire series of auction registers of various objects deriving from the inheritance of minors is preserved, in which the purchase at very reduced prices was typical, and on one occasion we find our abbot himself the protagonist. [Note 17]

In September 1719, twenty lots of inherited objects were put up for auction and sold for a total of L.5127.S18.d8. Three of these were won by our abbot himself and they are the most expensive: L. 840 for No. 1123, the first and most expensive on the list, and L. 308 for the two lots 1133 and 1134 taken together. I transcribe below the objects that made up the three lots. ___________________
16. Editto Degl’Illustrissimi SS. Protettori del Monte Redimibile della Città di Firenze. Del dì 5. Maggio 1727. . . Florence 1727.
17. ASFi, Magistrato dei Pupilli del Principato, N. 3409, pp. 103-105.




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1123. N: Five oval-shaped paintings, 1½ arms high, painted Portraits of the Most Serene House [i.e. the Grand Duke’s family], carved ornaments and gilded features in the Roman style.
1133. A bed of 4 arm lengths and 3 arm lengths - that is, 2 small benches, palliaces [thin straw mattresses used as pallets], two wool mattresses, and its curtainry, that is, six satin curtains, a bedside chest, sleeves, and a festoon made of Hungarian stitch, and its carved wood cornices, dyed Turquoise, and partly gilded.
1134. N: Six walnut chairs with armrests in the Imperial style, four of which are covered with stitching, and the other two covered with canvas, gilded brackets, and leather.

6. Conclusion

An entire account book was studied and transcribed in summary form, of a shop where coffee, chocolate, and a vast assortment of drinks manufactured on site were served, and what was more, there were the games of backgammon, trucco, minchiate, and other card games, unspecified. The profit obtained directly from the games, documented by what was found in the dedicated cash register, would be unflattering: the income deriving from the game was in fact only a small fraction of the total, but it is easy to suppose that without the playing of the games, the profit obtained from the drinks would have been considerably less, because few customers would have entered the shop if there had not been the possibility of gambling. That games were played, and quite a bit, is indicated by the variety of games which continually include minchiate and ordinary cards, but also games of different types such as trucco and backgammon. That the gaming activity was extensive is indirectly demonstrated by the consumption of candles, even in summer when it gets dark very late.

Of particular interest was the figure of Abbot Giuseppe Antonio Biliotti, financier of the start-up of the shop's activity - including gaming - whose accounts were reported; information was found for him from various sources, confirming his quality as a lively entrepreneur: there are only three pieces of information traced for him, but they all see him engaged in speculation. In short, his documented activity does not seem perfectly compatible with his religious mission, but there are other traces of wheeler-dealer abbots in the literature and the archives.

Florence, 02.04.2024