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The Journal of Cultural Economy has published an article in its most recent edition (Vol. 5, Issue 2, 2012) by Assistant Professor of English/Performance and Communication Arts Juraj Kittler. The theme of the issue is "Financial Panics and Crises," and Kittler's article is titled "Too Big to Fail: The 1499-1500 Banking Crisis in Renaissance Venice."
Kittler states, "The banking collapse in Venice is the earliest known financial crisis whose day to day unfolding was well documented by a trio of contemporary Venetian chroniclers, Marino Sanudo, Girolamo Priuli and Domenico Malipiero. Venice was a republic with the significant democratic features of decision-making built in its political system, but the same Venetian politicians who voted on the ways in which the government should intervene in order to save the banks from collapsing often had their own vested interest in the banks' survival: their families co-owned or had their fortunes invested in the collapsing banks. Ultimately, three out of four major Venetian banks collapsed despite government intervention, dramatically changing not only the financial, but also social and political landscape of Venice."
More: The Journal of Cultural Economy online
Posted: January 27, 2012
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