Cultural History

For Cultural History, a total of 6 epidemic events are known so far. It is a keyword.

Table

Table

Page	DateStart date of the disease.	SummarySummary of the disease event	OriginalOriginal text	TranslationEnglish translation of the text	ReferenceReference(s) to literature	Reference translationReference(s) to the translation
1348-00-00-Aquila2	1348 JL	About how wax became expensive and was regulated in use during funeral cerimonies while the Black Death ravaged in Aquila.	E della cera, dico, credo che abiate intiso, / se ne fosse u‘ romeio, lo quale vi fo priso: / a lo quarto de l’omini no fora ciro aciso / se omo avesse u‘ firino nella libra dispiso. Fo facto una ordenanza: che li homini acactasse / le ciri delle iclese e co‘ quilli pasasse, / e li altri poverelli canele no portasse: / dalle eclescie tolzéseli e li clirici acordasse. L’uomo che solia avere trenta libre de cera, / co‘ tre libra passavase per questa lor manera, / co‘ meza libra l’uomo che povero era; / acordava li clerici la domane o la sera. LCon tucto ’sto romegio la cera fo rencarata; / a vinti solli la libra li omini à conparata, / a dicidocto e a sidici, a dicisecte è stata, / quanno revende a quinici fo tenuta derrata. Anche a quisto romegio la cera no vastava, / se no fosse quillu ordine che li clerici usava; / con tanto pocatellio lu morto s’ofiziava, / tri volte le canele alla caia apicciava.	And when it comes to wax, as you might have guessed, / there was no remedy to be found: / A quarter of all people had no acces to wax at all / (unclear translation) There was an ordinance: People should accept / the wax from churches, what was assigned to them / and all the other poor should have no candles: / they should take it from tchurches, the clergy agreed. A man who used to have thirty pounds of wax / now had only three pounds in this manner / and a poor man only half a pound of wax. / The funeral took place the same or the next day, as clergy agreed upon. With all this regulation, wax became expensive: / people bought it for twenty soldi a pound / it had been between sixteen and eighteen, / if you could buy it for fifteen, you were lucky. But also with this regulation, the wax was not sufficient, / if the clergy hadn’t established another order: / With so little the funeral had to take place, / that candles were lit only three times during the ceremony.	Buccio di Ranallo, p. 242.	Translation by Martin Bauch
1348-00-00-Aquila3	1348 JL	About changing participation of funeral ceremonies while the Black Death ravaged Aquila.	Quanno era l’uomo morto, ch’a santi lu portavano, / infi‘ ch’era a la ’clesia, clirici no cantavano, / e poi ch’erano dentro, così poco pasavano: / duj versi e duj respunzi e poi lu socterravano. Anche fu uno statuto: a l’omo che moresse / chi visse no sonasse che omo nos se inpauresse, / e fore de castellio omo a morto no gesse, / accìo che li corructi la gente no sentesse. Or vi dirrò lu mudo ch’era no correctare: / a un citolu de lacte più se solea fare; / de granni della terra, quanno potia adunare / vinti persone insemora, pariali troppo fare. No se tenia lu modo che sse solia tenere; / lu dì che morio l’omo, faceanolu jacere / perfi‘ a l’altra domane, per più onore avere, / le castella invitavaci che gisse a conparere. Quanno fo ’sta mortauta, nell’ora che moria, / in quel’ora medemma in ecclesia ne gia; / in quillu dì medemmo vigilia non avia, / non era chi guardarelu, però se sopellia.	And when the dead person was taken to church / the clergy didn’t sing until they reached it / and once they were inside, they really did little: / two verses and two responsories and then they buried the dead person. There was another statute: For the dead person / no bells were rung as people might feel afraid / and people shouldn’t leave their homes for funerals / as they shouldn’t smell the dead (?). And now let me tell you about the funeral ceremony: / more people participated in the funeral of a small child / than in those of important people from the city / if there were 20 people, it was already large. And this was so different from before the plague: / if one died, he was lying in his house / for up to two days, as this was more honor / and people arrived also from outside town to pay their respect. During this epidemic, when a person had just died / in the same hour he was taken to church already / there was no wake on the same day / nobody present with the body, but he was buried	Buccio di Ranallo, pp. 242-243.	Translation by Martin Bauch
1348-00-00-Aquila5	1348 JL	About practices of making testaments during the Black Death in Aquila.	Tamanta era paura, che onde omo tremava / la morte ciaschesuno ongi iurnno aspectava; / più che del corpo, l’omo de l’anima penzava; / quanno era sano e salvo, chi savio era testava. Or chi vedesse prescia a iudici e notari, / che era nocte e iurnno dalli testamentari; / e illi consideranno petiano asai denari / testemoni medemmo, a trovare erano cari Quanno omo cercavali e quilli demanavano: / ‚E scricto lo testamento?‘ se nno, ca no ci anavano; / si dicea ch’era scricto, allora s’abiavano; / no che daventro intrasero, m’a la porta rogavano. Anche vi mecto in dicere que conmenente è stato, / quanno fo la mortauta, se l’uomo avia testato / con iudici e notari e testemonij rogato, / se tosto non era in carta de coro publicato. Se omo a duji jornni o a tri regia per lu stromento, / de iudici e notari trovava impedimento, / c’alcuno era amalato o era in falimento, / o qualche testemonio gito era al gra‘ convento. Chi volea lo rogo fare relevare, / lo notaro un florino volea adomandare; / tanto petea lo iudice per volerse senare, / l’omo poi accordavase, se non potea altro fare.	So large was fear, that everybod trembled / And expected to die any day / people were more preoccupied with their souls / and made their testaments as they were still healthy. You have seen how hastily people went to judges and notaries / to make their testaments day and night. / and those asked high prices, considering the risk / and it was expensive to find the necessary witnesses. When people searched them and the witnesses asked: / ‚Is the testament written?‘ If no, they didn’t come / if it was written, they agreed to come / but didn’t enter the house, just talked at the door. And I wanted to tell how it was in general / during the mortality when testaments were made / with jugdes and notaries and witnesses asked / if the document wasn’t published immediately. If a man returned after some days to get the testament / he found the judge or notarly not available / as some where ill or already about to die / or some withness had passed away. Who wanted to secure the juridical act / had to pay the notary a florin (gold coin) / so he would ask the judge to sign immediately / people accepted this, there was no other way.	Buccio di Ranallo, pp. 244-245.	Translation by Martin Bauch
1348-00-00-Aquila6	1348 JL	About the wealthy survivors of the Black Death in Aquila.	Li pochi che remasero, ciascuno ricco era, / per l’anima de‘ morti ne davana a rivera, / li clirici godiano la domane e la sera, / e ariccaro li urdini e tucte monastera. Li laici medemmo gaudiano volentero, / c’aveano delle cose p’ongi loro mistero; / per tanto poco preczo multe cose vennéro, / tre tanto vale mo: credateme ch’è vero. Quanno fo la mortauta, anni mille correa / e trecento e quaranta octo, così be‘ Dio ci dea; / tamanta fo paura che onn’omo temea, / multo altrugio renniose, chi morire credea. Chi facia testamento, null’omo che testava, / né parente né amico già no lli demannava / che cobelli lassaseli, ca no se nne curava, / le cose avia per niente c’a morir se pensava. O quante penetute de questo vi so‘ state, / che non se provedero de ’ste cose passate, / che ricchi potiano essere delle cose lassate, / che invidia hebbero a chi de ciò sono ariccate.	The few who surved were all rich then / for the souls of the deceased they gave a lot / the clergy took advantage of this day and night / and religious house and monasteries got rich. But also lay people profited a lot / to their surprise, they had everything now / prices were suddenly so low for many things. / hardly a third; you can believe me. When the mortality was, in the year thousand / and threehundred and forty eight, as the good Lord decided (?) / as everybody was full of fear / much was given to who had feared to die. One had made a testament, or had ben a witness / had no parent or friend left / who could be made a heir / as he had feared to die in vain. Oh how much penitence was achieved / by those who didn’t accept goods then / how rich could they have got from the inheritance / what envy they had for those who enriched themselves.	Buccio di Ranallo, pp. 246-247.	Translation by Martin Bauch
1348-00-00-Aquila7	1348 JL	Social and moral effects of the Black Death in Aquila: New marriages and people leaving monastic communities, becoming greedy and mad in the eyes of the chronicler.	Scorta la mortaute, li omini racelaro; / quili che non l’aveano la mollie se pilliaro / e lle femene vidove sì sse remaritaro: / iuvini, vecchie e citule a questo modo annaro. No tanto altre femene, vizoche e religiose, / multe jectaro lo abito e vidile fare spose, / e multi frati dell‘ ordine oscire per queste cose, / omo de cinquanta anni la citula piliose. Tamanta era la prescia dello rimaritare, / che tante per iorno erano, no se poria contare; / non aspectava domeneca multi per nocze fare; / non se facian conzienzia de cose ch’eran care. (...) La iente fo mancata e l’avarizia cresciuta; / danunca era femina ch’avesse dote manzuta; / da l’uomo che più potea da quello era petuta, / peio ci fo che questo, c’alcuna fo raputa. Demente erano uscite da quelle gra‘ paure / della corte malanze con le bianullie dure, / de sadisfare l’animo poco era chi se cure, / a crescere ad ariccare puneano studio pure.	When mortality came to an end, people felt relief / those who had no wife, looked for one / and the widows married again / young, old and children behaved the same way. And other women, even nuns / threw away their clothes and they became brides / and many friars left their order for the same reason / and men of fifty years married young girls. So large was this urge to marry again / so many marriages a day you couldn’t count it: / They didn’t wait for Sundays to marry / and they ignored how expensive everything had got. (...) People had become less, but greed increased; / every women had an extraordinary dowry, / and she married the man who could provide most, worst of all, some were even robbed (?). In a state of madness they had left the great fear / of the rapid disease with the hard buboes / to satisfy their souls if they had been cured / they turned their minds to enrich themselves only.	Buccio di Ranallo, pp. 248-250.	Translation by Martin Bauch
1348-00-00-Aquila8	1348 JL	A general dearth of foodstuffs and other goods after the Black Death in Aquila.	Chi vedesse la che se vennia a macellio! / Giamaj i‘ nulla citade no llo vidi sì bellio; / tante some ne ’sciano che paria u‘ ribellio; / chi non avia denari, ’cidease lu porcellio. Come fo gra‘ mercato, inanti, delle cose, / così se rencaro, dico, per queste spose; / panni e arigento e quello che allora abesongiose, / eranto tante care che se veneano oltragiose. Secte carlini viddi dare inelli pianilli, / cinque e quatro carlini e sei nelli cercelli, / e quatro e cinque solli jo ci vidi li anelli, / delli panni no dicovi, ca foro cari velli.	And incredible how people ran to the butcher! / They had never been so rich in any city before: / They all ran for meat as if there was a riot / who didn’t have money, killed his own piglings How big demand there was for all things / that’s why it became so expensive for weddings / cloth and all kinds of things you would need / became expensive beyond all limits Seven carlini for shoes / Four to six carlini for round earrings / four to five soldi for a little lamb / and I won’t mention linen, as is was so expensive	Buccio di Ranallo, p. 248.	Translation by Martin Bauch

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