The Zecca Mint : A Self-Enforcing Monetary Constitution in Historic Venice

Monetary history is largely a repeated narrative of currency debasement. Yet historic Venice (1172-1797), ruled by elite patricians, stands out as an example of relative monetary stability. This paper provides a historical case of Venice’s Zecca Mint which provided the elite patricians of Venice with a stable currency, playing a role in fostering the economic success of the Republic of Venice. This paper identifies three factors that together formed a self-enforcing monetary constitution to inhibit public currency debasement in historic Venice: (i) the assignment of public debt to patricians; (ii) the nearly uniform trade-centric focus of the patricians; and (iii) the use of turn-taking in office for mintmasters