Antonio Serra and the Economics of Good Government [Hardcover]

In this book some of the world's leading economists and experts on Serra explore the enduring appeal of his 1613 Breve trattato.

Little is known of Antonio Serra except that hewrote his extraordinary 1613 ShortTreatise on the Causes that Make Kingdoms Abound in Gold and Silver even in theAbsence of Mines in a Neapolitan jail, and that he died there soonafterwards. However, the influence of this work represents a watershed not onlyin the discipline of economics but in the history of social science andintellectual history more generally.In this book, some of the worlds leading economists and experts onSerra explore the enduring appeal of his ShortTreatise. The authors analyse the work in its historical, economic,cultural and intellectual contexts, exploring the finer details of his theoriesregarding economic development and international financial interactions, aswell as his indebtedness to earlier Renaissance traditions. The book alsouncovers new material relating to Serras life and provides in-depthinterpretation of his key insights, influences and political economy.Thisbook highlights the parallels between issues discussed by Serra and modernpolitical and scholarly consciousness, and illustrates the importance andinfluences of historical debate in modern economic thinking.Introduction: Rosario Patalano and Sophus A. Reinert
1. The Place of Naples in the Seventeenth-century Spanish Empire: Gabriel Paquette
2. The Vicaria Prison of Naples in the time of Antonio Serra: Francesca De Rosa
3. The Cost of Empires: Antonio Serra and the Debate on the Causes and Solutions of Economic Crises in the Viceroyalty of Naples in the Seventeenth Century: Giovanni Zanalda
4. Serra's Brief Treatise in a World-System Perspective: The Dutch Miracle and Italian Decadence in the Early 17th Century: Rosario Patalano
5. The Influence of Portuguese Economic Thought on the Breve trattato:
Antonio Serra and Miguel Vaaz lÓ^