教会史料を通してみた糸割符

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In order to clarify the character of the Itowappu system, which was established by the Edo Bakufu government in 1604 in relation to the Portuguese silk trade between Nagasaki and Makao, the Portuguese documents are as important as the Japanese, Dutch, or British records. However, the Portuguese traders, unlike the English and Dutch, left no record on their commercial activities in Japan. It is therefore the missionary documents which complement, to a certain degree, the lack of the Portuguese rccords. The Jesuit missionaries, from the outset of the Christian mission in Japan, shared the same interests with the Portuguese in the trade, since their work in Japan considerably depended on the income from the trade. In addition, the missionaries were in a position wherd they could obtain a thorough knowledge of the negotiation at Nagasaki, as they played an important part as an intermediary between Portuguese and Japanese merchants. By examining they church documents left by these missionaries, it is possible to clarify several points concerning the Itowappu system. (1) The immediate cause of the establishment of this system mentioned in Itowappu Yuisho Gaki (History of Itowappu), a Japanese document, is not to be trusted. (2) The Itowappu system was said to have following characteristics: (A) The Itowappu merchants (and the Bakufu) bought all of the silk from the Portuguese at a time; (B) They took advantage of the monopoly position in this transaction; (C) The Japanese buyers had the right to set the price. Among these characteristics, the wholesale system (A) was the Portuguese way of negotiation even before the establishment of the system. Therefore, it has nothing to do with the Itowappu system. As for the character (C), the church documents do not prove it. Tough the point (B) is important, it was a problem of distribution among Japanese merchants after the Portuguese had sold the silk. As a result, the missionaries were not interested in this matter, and the church documents tell us almost nothing about it. Yet, one of the points which are clarified by the above documents shows that the Nagasaki Bugyo held an important role in negotiating the pancada, the price of silk, with the Portuguese.
社会経済史学会の論文
1972-02-20

教会史料を通してみた糸割符

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