A Button, an Egg, a Piece of Cheese: Gifts and Donations for the Cathedral of Milan.

The author explores the financing of the Cathedral of Milan's construction, revealing that it relied almost entirely on voluntary donations by a wide citizenry rather than upon taxes, tithes, or a single great benefactor. The analysis of the multiple, synergic techniques devised for alms collection, their monetization process and their sources reveals the crucial importance for cathedral financing of small gifts and donations-- silver coins, buttons, secondhand dresses or a piece of cheese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]