The Law of the Florentine Catasto of 1427

Furthermore, the aforementioned Lords Priors The Signori Priori, the primary executive body of Florence. and the Standard-bearer The Gonfaloniere di Giustizia, the head of the government. are required and must, successively and without any interval of time, call together at the same time the councils The Consiglio del Popolo and the Consiglio del Comune, the two main legislative assemblies. of the said People and Commune by the sound of the bell and the voice of the crier The banditore, an official who made public announcements., as is customary. They must gather them in sufficient numbers in the palace and the usual hall and, in the presence of both councils meeting together as stated above, have names drawn for each gonfalone A neighborhood administrative district. from the bag The borsa, used for the random selection of officials.. From the bag in which the members of the seven greater guilds The Sette Maggiori Arti, the elite professional and mercantile guilds (e.g., judges, wool merchants, bankers). were placed, they shall draw until they have fifteen men without failing the number written below; and from the bag in which the members of the fourteen lesser guilds The Quattordici Minori Arti, representing tradespeople and artisans (e.g., butchers, blacksmiths, shoemakers). were placed, they shall draw until they have five men without failing the number written below. In total, between the greater and lesser guilds, there shall be twenty men for each gonfalone.

To this is added and understood that if in any gonfalone it is not possible to obtain the full number of twenty, it shall be sufficient to have as many as can be had, and a greater number shall not be required in such a case.

Furthermore, the Notary of the Mirror The Specchio, a record book listing citizens who were ineligible for office because they were in debt to the state for taxes. of the said Commune must be present at the said drawing The tratta, the ritual of pulling name-slips from the bags.. If anyone is drawn who is recorded in any Mirror, their name-slip shall be torn up. In place of the one drawn and discarded, another must be drawn so that, as stated above, the full number written above may be scrutinized The squittini, a process of voting by secret ballot to confirm the eligibility and character of those drawn. if possible, as follows.

Furthermore, everyone who is drawn shall be understood to be, and shall be, eligible and qualified, even if they currently hold any office within the city, or preside over any office, or had already been drawn for one, or even if they were among those who are to conduct the election, or if they had any prohibition, ban, obstacle, or objection. This is provided and limited such that, in the total number for the entire city, no more than two may be taken or serve from the same house, lineage The schiatta, an extended family line., kinship group The consorteria, a formal alliance of families, often noble., or male bloodline. Nor shall the Lords Priors of the Guilds and the Standard-bearer of Justice, nor the Standard-bearers of the Companies of the People The Gonfalonieri delle Compagnie, leaders of the neighborhood militias. [be included].