Legal Definitions - apochae oneratoriae

Apochae oneratoriae is a historical Latin term that refers to documents serving as receipts for cargo. In modern legal and commercial language, these documents are equivalent to what we call bills of lading. Historically, an apochae oneratoriae was a critical document in maritime trade, acknowledging that specific goods had been loaded onto a vessel and outlining the terms for their transportation and eventual delivery to a designated recipient.

Here are some examples illustrating the concept of apochae oneratoriae:

• Imagine a merchant in ancient Rome, around 100 AD, loading a shipment of fine pottery from Campania onto a merchant ship bound for the port of Ostia. The ship's captain would issue an apochae oneratoriae to the merchant. This document would detail the quantity and type of pottery received, confirm its loading onto the vessel, and specify the destination. It served as proof for the merchant that their goods were entrusted to the captain for transport and would be presented at Ostia to claim the cargo upon arrival.

• Consider a scenario in the 14th century, where a trader in Bruges, a major trading hub in Flanders, arranged to ship several bales of high-quality wool cloth across the North Sea to a buyer in London. The master of the merchant cog (a type of sailing ship) would provide the Bruges trader with an apochae oneratoriae. This document would list the specific number of bales, their contents, and the agreed destination of London. It functioned as a receipt for the goods and a contract for their safe passage, allowing the London buyer to verify the shipment and claim it from the ship upon its docking.

• Picture a Venetian merchant in the 16th century, overseeing the loading of valuable spices and silks onto a galley in Alexandria, Egypt, destined for Venice. The captain of the galley would issue an apochae oneratoriae to the Venetian merchant. This document would meticulously list the precious cargo, confirm its receipt by the captain, and specify Venice as the port of discharge. It was a vital record, not only confirming the goods were on board but also potentially allowing the merchant to sell the cargo to another party *while it was still at sea* by transferring the document, which represented ownership of the goods.