1638 FIRST EDITION ON FINANCE, ECONOMICS, BANK INTEREST, LOANS, USURY, BANKS, LAW, HISTORY OF GREEK, ROMAN, ARAB, JEWISH AND WORLD FINANCE by Claude Saumaise or Claudius Salmasius (1588–1653), a French protestant classical scholar. This book "De Usuris Liber" (A Book on Usury) is a landmark text in the history of economic thought and published in Leiden, Netherlands, the treaty represented the intellectual coup de grace to the medieval prohibition on charging interest. The book advocates moderate and lawful interest on lent money (not loan shark rates). Although opposed by many lawyers and theologians, the Dutch Reformed Church began to admit moneylenders to the sacrament. For centuries, both the Catholic Church and early Protestant reformers condemned charging any interest on a loan. The prohibition was backed by biblical interpretations and Aristotle's philosophical claim that "money is barren" (a coin cannot organically breed another coin). But by the early 17th century, Amsterdam, Leiden, and the Republic of the United Provinces had become the commercial epicenter of the world. The thriving mercantile economy required a vast credit network, placing everyday commercial practices in direct conflict with religious doctrine. Original 17th century hard parchment binding, solid, almost free of defects, as shown in the photo. This book contains hundreds of quotes, examples, and comparisons from Greek, Roman, Arab, and Jewish history, explaining that interest on loans had been used for millennia. For example, the Sumerians and Babylonians operated a credit-based economy, and around 1750 BCE, the Code of Hammurabi established legal limits to prevent debt bondage. The standard interest rate was 20% for loans in silver and 33.3% for grain. The first "banks" were heavily fortified temples. Citizens deposited grain or silver there for safekeeping, and the administration lent it to merchants or farmers. The Romans charged interest on loans according to the "Law of the Twelve Tables." In the Old Testament Jews were not permitted to charge interest to Jews, but could do so to non-Jews. Claude Saumaise was a leading professor at Leiden University and dismantled the ancient prohibition with these 4 main arguments: A) Lending was a legitimate activity, while selling the use of money was a trade like any other. The lender takes a risk and sacrifices his own use of capital; therefore, interest is simply the market price for that service. B) Money is not sterile: he refuted the Aristotelian idea by pointing out that, while physical money does not reproduce, goods purchased with money (land, ships, or tools) are highly productive. Therefore, unused money carries an opportunity cost that deserves to be compensated. C) He exposed loopholes: he ridiculed the "extrinsic titles" and legal fictions that the Church used to allow interest under different names ("late payment fees" or "exchange rates"). Saumaise wanted to call a spade a spade and admit that they were legal. D) The power of competition: Saumaise observed that capping or banning interest rates only harmed borrowers. If society wanted lower interest rates, it should increase the number of lenders, so that competition would naturally drive the market toward lower borrowing costs. TITLE: "De Usuris Liber" (A Book on Usury) AUTHORS: Claude Saumaise or Claudius Salmasius (1588–1653) PUBLISHER: Ex officina Elzeviriana (Bonaventura and Abraham Elzevier) DATE: 1638, printed in Leiden, text mainly in Latin, but with large sections and quotations in Greek, Arabic and Hebrew throughout the book, extensive double index in Latin and Greek DESCRIPTION & CONDITION: In-8° size height 164 x width 115 mm or 6.5 by 4.5 inches. Pages [56], 686, [72], COMPLETE FIRST EDITION. Original 17th century hard parchment binding, smooth spine with titles written in ancient pen, the binding is in almost perfect condition, solid, almost free from defects, no missing parts, only a few small stains on the spine as shown in the photo. The pages are in good condition, almost intact, rare defects and small stains, signature of the previous owner (initials) on the title page at the top right, on the white margin, all other pages are in good condition, clear, well-printed pages, dozens of beautiful headers and ornate initials punctuating the pages and beginnings of chapters. LITERATURE/REFERENCES: World Cat n°892144220; USTC n°1027926; Short Title Catalogue Netherlands n°83276728X; Kress 536; Einaudi 5085; Willems 471; London, United Kingdom, British Library Shelfmark: 500.a.20; Rennes, France, Bibliothèque universitaire Shelfmark: 51893; Den Haag, Netherlands, Koninklijke Bibliotheek Shelfmark: 1124 E 31; Madrid, Spain, Biblioteca del Senado Shelfmark: 7893; Gent, Belgium, Centrale Bibliotheek van de Universiteit Gent Shelfmark: BIB.JUR.010189; Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Salmasius, Claudius" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 81; Gustave Cohen, Écrivains français en Hollande, Paris, 1920, pages 311-333. SHIPPING: via UPS, DHL, FEDEX, National Postal Services, protected, INSURED and fully tracked package. Estimated time for Europe 3-5 working days. Shipping within one working day, you can combine shipping if you purchases several items from us, saving money and time.