Working Paper: NBER ID: w9173
Authors: Jonathan Katz Nelson; Richard J. Zeckhauser
Abstract: Catholic churches in Renaissance Florence supported themselves overwhelmingly from the contributions of wealthy citizens. The sale of private chapels within churches to individuals was a significant source of church funds, and facilitated a church construction boom. Chapel sales offered three benefits to churches: prices were usually far above cost; donor/purchasers purchased masses and other tie-in services; and they added to the magnificence of the church because donors were required to decorate chapels expensively. Donors purchased chapels for two primary reasons: to facilitate services for themselves and their families, such as masses and church burials, that would speed their departure from Purgatory; and to gain status in the community. Chapels were private property within churches, but were only occasionally used directly by their owners. The expense of chapels and their decorations made them an ideal signal for wealth, particularly since sumptuary laws limited most displays of wealth. To overcome the contributions free-rider problem, these churches sold private benefits not readily available elsewhere, namely status and salvation.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: L31; D82; D64
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| sale of private chapels (Z18) | increased church funding (I22) |
| donor motivations (D64) | purchase of chapels (Z18) |
| purchase of chapels (Z18) | increased church funding (I22) |
| private benefits (J32) | purchase of chapels (Z18) |
| private donations (D64) | public goods (art and architecture) (H49) |