Venetian Ships and Shipbuilders of the Renaissance

When we first arrived in Venice, the first thing that I noticed was the city’s history. It’s over 1,000 years old, with some of the buildings in the city around 800 years old. When you see everything in the city, from the cathedrals to the canals, you can’t help but stop and think about the history of the place. Walking past (and traveling by boat on) some of these canals reminded me of an article we presented in class about Venetian ships and shipbuilders during the Renaissance era.

During this time, shipbuilders were strongly devoted to their craft and were members of craft guilds. These guilds were the result of the combination of two institutions: the first was scuola, which was a society of devotion that existed for common worship and attendance (religion had an important role). The one that came later was known as the arte, which aimed towards maintaining the craft discipline and regulating activity. Some people saw the guilds as branches of the state or city of Venice, while others saw them as associations of craftsmen who wanted to further their own interests. The guilds had meetings and dues to raise money for services – similar to that of a modern-day union.

The craft guilds used these funds to provide a variety of services to both craftsmen and employers. Some of these include social insurance programs for older workers, savings accounts for employees, and sick benefits. The main goal of these guilds was to improve the conditions of employment for their works, and they put down ground rules between employees and craftsmen. Rules were also created for apprentices, who were new employees trained by experienced workers. Overall, the craft guilds not only aimed to improve worker conditions, but express the craftsmen’s self-interest as well.

It has been great to learn about the history of work in Venice. I’m looking forward to learning more about other cities as we continue the trip!