This paper examines risk management strategies in 15th-century Barcelona through a quantitative and institutional analysis of Joan de Torralba’s maritime insurance operations. Drawing from 195 insurance cases recorded between 1434 and 1446, we reconstruct patterns of coverage, premium pricing, and Torralba’s dual role as both policyholder and underwriter. Combining systematic accounting analysis with econometric modelling, we show that insurance rates were shaped not only by cargo value but also by destination-specific perceptions of risk. The results highlight the emergence of rational pricing mechanisms, growing local control over insurance markets, and Barcelona’s integration into broader Mediterranean financial circuits. The study contributes to our understanding of early insurance as both protection and investment.
University of Barcelona, Spain - ORCID: 0000-0002-6184-5352
University of Barcelona, Spain - ORCID: 0000-0001-5372-7594
Titolo del capitolo
Managing risk in fifteenth-century Barcelona: The insurance practices of the merchant Joan de Torralba
Autori
María Dolores López Pérez, Sari Yehuda Nassar
Lingua
Inglese
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-0963-2.24
Opera sottoposta a peer review
Anno di pubblicazione
2026
Copyright
© 2026 Author(s)
Licenza d'uso
Licenza dei metadati
Titolo del libro
Gestione del rischio, insolvenza e bancarotta nel mondo premoderno (secc. XIII-XVIII) / Risk management, insolvency, and bankruptcy in the pre-modern world (13th-18th centuries)
Curatori
Angela Orlandi
Opera sottoposta a peer review
Numero di pagine
568
Anno di pubblicazione
2026
Copyright
© 2026 Author(s)
Licenza d'uso
Licenza dei metadati
Editore
Firenze University Press
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-0963-2
ISBN Print
979-12-215-0962-5
eISBN (pdf)
979-12-215-0963-2
eISBN (xml)
979-12-215-0964-9
Collana
Datini Studies in Economic History
ISSN della collana
2975-1241
e-ISSN della collana
2975-1195