Social status of stone craftsmen in the Late Middle Ages. An analysis of majorcan documentary sources

Abstract

This article aims to discern the social status that lapiscidae or stone craftsmen had at the end of the Middle Ages, specifically between the end of the 14th and the beginning of the 16th century. This is undertaken through the analysis of available evidence that allows us to learn about the prestige they achieved, their level of self-esteem, their group consciousness, and their cultural and intellectual development level, as well as the inequalities existing among the members of the collective. Although the search for primary sources focussed on Majorcan archives, the conclusions reached on the matter can be extrapolated to other geographical contexts.