Between Roman home and Portuguese hearth. Jerónimo da Fonseca in Rome

Abstract

The article presents the case of the merchant-banker Jerónimo da Fonseca and his activities in Rome in order to display the dichotomy evinced among members of the Portuguese converso community in Rome between rootedness in Rome and maintaining links to their homeland. Fonseca’s will, in particular, which is published in this article, displays up to what point both these tendencies were present in their strategies to accumulate patrimony, social capital and to consolidate themselves in Rome, all the while maintaining family ties and a strong Iberian identity.