Iban Redondo-Parés

This books analyses the complex panorama of the art markets between Flanders and Castile during the reign of Isabel I of Castile. The research is structured around three pillars: demand, supply and the market itself. Firstly, we analyse the economic, social, cultural and legal aspects that fostered an increase in the art trade during one of the brightest periods in Castilian economic history. The merchants are placed at the centre of the research, whose role was paramount in several fields: as intermediaries to the final customers of foreign artworks, as consumers of the works they themselves transported, or as real trend setters of the time. Their analysis has allowed us to reach significant conclusions and we propose further investigation of this subject. Finally, we feature in our research some aspects that are usually neglected in Art History studies, such as the importance of the Castilian fairs, the management of the retail shops or the transport and handling of the works of art that were brought from Flanders into Castile.

Este libro analiza el complejo panorama del mercado de arte entre Flandes y Castilla en tiempos de Isabel I de Castilla. La investigación se articula en torno a tres vectores principales: demanda, oferta y mercado. En el primero, se analizan los condicionantes económicos, sociales, culturales y jurídicos que propiciaron el boom del comercio artístico en una de las épocas más prósperas de la historia económica castellana. En el epicentro del estudio situamos a los mercaderes, cuyo papel fue indispensable en una múltiple vertiente: siendo intermediarios de los clientes finales de obra foránea, actuando como introductores de tendencias, o convirtiéndose en consumidores de las propias piezas artísticas que transportaban. Su análisis ha permitido llegar a importantes conclusiones y abogamos por nuevas investigaciones en este campo. Por último, ponemos en valor aspectos poco estudiados en la Historia del Arte, tales como el papel de las ferias castellanas, la gestión de las tiendas de venta al por menor o el transporte y manipulación de las propias obras traídas desde Flandes a Castilla.

This article is focused on the study of the Castilian Late Medieval fairs and the European international art trade. First of all, the Castilian fairs are analysed, with particular interest in that of Medina del Campo. Secondly, we outline the commercial network that enabled the organisation of those fairs: the merchants, the commercial routes and the techniques and elements used, such as the packaging and the merchant marks. Finally, we reflect upon the merchant marks as the structuring element that lied behind the fairs and the international trade.
Este artículo centra su estudio en las ferias bajomedievales castellanas y en el comercio de arte internacional europeo. En primer lugar se analizan las ferias castellanas, con especial interés la de Medina del Campo. Seguidamente, se expone el entramado comercial que hacía posible dichas ferias: los mercaderes, las rutas comerciales y las técnicas y elementos empleados, tales como los embalajes y las marcas de mercader. Finalmente, se reflexiona sobre las marcas de mercader como elemento vertebrador del entramado comercial que subyacía detrás de las ferias y el comercio internacional.

Castilian merchants have not been a popular subject within Spanish historiography. In recent years some scholars have emphasized their importance in the global trade during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Thanks to the most recent publications regarding their activities, we can draw a clear picture of their businesses within the first process of globalization, focusing on the art markets during those times.

Los mercaderes castellanos no han gozado de mucha popularidad en la historiografía española. En los últimos años algunos autores han resaltado su importancia en el comercio global de los si- glos xv y xvi. Según las últimas aportaciones referidas a sus actividades podemos trazar una imagen clara de sus negocios dentro de la primera globalización, centrándonos en el mercado de arte.

This article examines merchants' marks and watermarks as the possible source of printers' marks. It traces connections between them and their various uses, as well as the difficulties in differenciating them. They are studied in relation to the trade in books and paper.

This paper analyses the Art Markets between the former Netherlands and Spain during the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century. With regards to the transport and marketing of the art works, documents held in Spanish archives show that a complex network of agents and infrastructure existed. Not all ports were equally equipped, and it is feasible to think that expensive triptychs and tapestries were shipped to seaports endowed with docks, ramps and suitable warehouses. Inexpensive, mass-produced works such as small statues were taken to any kind of port, as their transport would not require such detailed and careful planning. The role of the merchants is of paramount importance in art trade; evidence shows that whereas most merchants would include any kind of art works in their ships, a select group would focus only on expensive requests. Not only did this elite work just for wealthy patrons, but they also lent money to the Crown and became a very influential social group in the political daily life of their time. This is fairly proved by the use of their merchant marks, initially used as an identifying sign that later became included in their own artistic commissions, proudly displayed, just as the nobility did with their heraldic shields.