
On the Duties of Merchants
Daniel Souterius(Author)
CLP Academic (Publisher)
Published on 25. August 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
176 pages
978-1-949011-16-6 (ISBN)
Description
In 1602 the States General of the new Dutch Republic established the United East India Company. This first multinational corporation dominated international trade for nearly two centuries. The Dutch Reformed minister Daniel Souterius (1571-1634) dedicated his De officiis mercatorum (1615) to its directors. Translated here for the first time, this work is an apology for commerce from the early days of the Dutch Republic. It precedes the famous oration On the Wise Merchant from Caspar Barlaeus by almost two decades and shows no traces of what has been called the "embarrassment of riches." In addressing all Christian merchants, it frees itself of interconfessional controversy and outlines a set of norms to evaluate commercial activity. Souterius's book adopts the humanist method of "patchwork" introduced by Justus Lipsius, combining well-chosen quotations from a wide range of classical and Christian authors. This translation sheds new light on the early history of Dutch economic thought and on the ethics of commerce in the early modern period.
More details
Series
Language
English
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 10 mm
Weight
230 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-949011-16-6 (9781949011166)
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Schweitzer Classification