Cartaz

The Cartaz (plural cartazes, in Portuguese) was a special paper that allowed ships to trade safely in the Indian Ocean during the 1500s. It was given out by the Portuguese Empire between about 1502 and 1750. People called it a "license" or a "pass" for their ships.

This paper had an important job. It helped control trade and made sure only certain ships could travel in those waters. If a ship did not have a Cartaz, it might be stopped or even taken by Portuguese ships.

The idea behind the Cartaz was similar to a system used much later by the British called the navicert. This shows how some old ideas about trade and safety at sea are still remembered today.

Background

The Portuguese began giving special licenses to ships in 1443. Prince Henry the Navigator started this with the help of the king and the Pope. He wanted to control all travel along the west African coast. This helped Portugal support more trips to explore new places. In return for these licenses, ships paid Portugal a part of their profits, usually 20%, called "the fifth." This encouraged many people to invest in these adventures.

The cartazes

The cartazes system began in 1502 to help control trade in the Indian Ocean. These special papers, called cartaz, were given by the Portuguese to merchant ships. They protected ships from pirates and other enemies in the busy waters. The main goal was to make sure traders paid taxes at Portuguese trading spots like Goa, Malacca, and Ormuz. This helped the Portuguese control the spice trade and other valuable goods.

Ships without a cartaz could lose their goods or even be attacked by the Portuguese. Every year during the monsoon, Portuguese ships would check for these papers along the coast. As time passed and the Portuguese had less power, selling these papers became a way for them to earn money.

Trivia

The cartaz system helped create a new word in the Malayalam language of Kerala. The word kadalaas still means any kind of paper today. A similar thing happened in Thai, where the word krà.dàːt (กระดาษ) also means paper.