The Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara, Vol. I v1.c10.104

v1.c10.104

9. Trade continued to flourish between Goa and Vijayanagara itself. In 1585, the Italian traveller Philippo Sasseti sent from Goa to Giambatista Strozzi, at Firenze, the following information on the Portuguese commerce between both cities previous to the battle of Raksas-Tagdi. He says that before that disaster, Vijayanagara “had such great traffic going through its streets that it was beyond imagination, and that there dwelt in it very rich people not as rich as the people of our country but as Cresus and other rich of days gone by. Large quantities of goods that came from our possessions via Alexandria and Soria were then consumed, and all the cloths and linen, which were made in such a large quantity, could be disposed of there. The traffic was so great that the road going from here (Goa) to that town was always as crowded as the roads leading to a fair, and the profit was so sure that the only trouble was to bring the goods there. Anything that was carried there by the merchants after a fortnight of walking, was sold there with a profit of 25 or 30 per cent. Besides they came back with other merchandise, and what a merchandise! diamonds, rubies, pearls. In these things the profit was even greater¹. And finally the tax on the horses that came from Persia to go to that kingdom yielded in this town a hundred and twenty or a hundred and fifty thousand ducats”¹.