The heritage of venetian merchants: about the essence of double-entry in accounting

Abstract

The purpose of article is to challenge the opinion on “incomprehensibility” of double-entry accounting existing in the scientific environment. On the basis of the tractate “On the Accounts and Records” the first description of book-keeping procedure is considered. The explanation of personification and other aspects difficult for perception is presented. The special attention is paid to medieval terminology and its interrelation with a modern conceptual framework of Accounting. As a result of research the alternative hypothesis of the origin of double entry is proposed.