The problem of jettison in medieval Mediterranean maritime law

Bibliographic Data

ID11893012
AuthorsOlivia Remie Constable (Columbia University, corresponding author)
Year1994
Volume20
Issue3
Pages207-220
Publication date1994-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Medieval History (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0304-4181 • E-ISSN: 1873-1279
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1016/0304-4181(94)90001-9
OpenAlexW2087595409
LanguageEN
Citations received4

The necessity of jettison in the face of a threatened shipwreck was a ubiquitous phenomenon of medieval maritime travel, and thus a body of maritime law emerged to handle the consequences of this event. This paper examines the variety of solutions to the problems arising from jettison proposed by Roman and medieval lawyers in the Mediterranean world, both Christian and Muslim, from the 6th century to the 14th century. Although most legal texts indicated a common understanding of the principals of general average (an almost universal system for equitably distributing losses following a jettison), opinions varied widely on details of procedure. Who, for example, took part in the decision that jettison was necessary? How were calculations made for assessing loss and value, and who was liable to pay compensation? Differences of opinion on these and other issues suggest that regional maritime laws may have been more affected by local practice than by adherence to the particular legal tradition with which they were more generally affiliated

Archaeology · Compensation (psychology · Face (sociological concept · Mediterranean climate · Political science · Social science · Sociology · Value (mathematics · Variety (cybernetics · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Computer Science · Global Maritime and Colonial Histories · History · Law · Maritime and Coastal Archaeology · Psychology

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