«…In passaggio, andando e tornando…»: per un quadro delle transumanze in Toscana tra XII e XV secolo

The papers aims to provide a general overview of the various forms of transhumance developed in Tuscany between 12th-15th centuries by integrating the literature with a recent research on primary sources. It intends to highlight continuity and differences in transhumant practices between medieval and early modern times, the golden age of this pastoral system, as well as to to outline the related gaps in Tuscan historiography. A brief discussion of the sources and studies used (1) serves as an introduction to the chronological reconstruction of the development of transhumance in Tuscany (2), to a survey of its various forms (3) as well as to an analysis of the continuity of long-distance routes between medieval and modern period (4). The paper ends by focusing on two relevant although less studied socio-economic features of Tuscan transhumance: first, the timing of seasonal practices, the daily life, the use of the violence within shepherds groups as well as some zootechnical elements (5). Second, the macro-economic elements behind the development of transhumance in the late middle ages such as capital, trends and strategies of production as well as the role of the markets (6).