The Monte di Pietà in Gozo 1910-1939 : a social perspective : the inception of the Monte part 1

Abstract

The history of the Monte di Pietà of Gozo has not been treated in Maltese history barring some cursive references in a few history books. Consequentially, one of the main problems was the lack of sources, especially secondary sources. The primary sources researched were the actual pawning tickets which had never been researched before; material which had been rescued from certain destruction in the hands of mould and neglect. After exploring the Monte’s inception and raison d’être together with the administrative aspect and perspective, the research moves on to its more important issue: that of the actual clients of the Monte and tries to understand the how and why of its usage. Gender and family issues come into relief in such a work necessarily set against geographic, seasonal and economic backdrops to these pawning activities. These conditions include the economy of the Maltese Islands, the nature of the work carried out by the inhabitants, employment opportunities or lack thereof, personal and family lifecycles and annual religious feast cycles. Another area which is investigated to complete the picture is familial and neighbourhood networking which supported pawning activities. However, for this two-part article, the focus is on the Monte di Pietà’s origin and function.