Letter of Consent of the Goat’s Hair Processing Guild in Tarnovo, November 6, 1872

Abstract

The consent letter of Goat’s Hair Processing Guild in Tarnovo dated back in November 6, 1872 is a contract (agreement) between the members of the governing body, attached with their signatures, seals and fingerprints for compliance with certain clauses, as an integral part of the statute (law) and the rules of the corporate organization. The analysis of the preserved manuscript texts in Bulgarian answers a number of questions related to the social status and property status of the representatives of the guild of Goat’s hair processing, the level of education and literacy, the membership and the participation of master craftsmen from nearby settlements in the association. In a comparative analysis with other documents from an earlier and/or later historical period, a repetition of the names of some of the Tarnovo craft’s men(mutafchii) – participants in the board of directors, is noticeable. They are represented in various incarnations as benefactors, wealthy merchants or members of the municipal council. The graphic prints of the personal and official seals on the document, their technical parameters and artistic analysis cast new light on the biographies of their holders before 1872. The collected historical information about the activities of the goat’s-hair rugs makers’ guild in Tarnovo in 1872 – extracted from the document, is systematized and analyzed in separate annexes. These include facsimiles, a list of members of the governing body and a catalogue of the official and personal seals.