Certificate of the Vogt and jurors of Kraków regarding the method of electing the college of forty men

WE, THE VOGT and jurors of the ordinary municipal law of Kraków. We announce by the power of this letter to all whom it may concern: That having appeared personally before us, the honorable Paweł Szczerbic, scribe of the city of Lwów, requested us to issue him a certificate of the method of electing the forty men, which has been observed among us until now, and this is due to the decree of His Holy Royal Majesty, issued and announced on the Saturday before the feast of Pentecost in the past year of our Lord one thousand five hundred and seventy-seven, between the distinguished council and the Lwów commonalty. In this decree, His Holy Royal Majesty deigned to order them to behave and proceed in the election of the forty men according to the order and method of the city of Kraków. Finally, acceding to his request, as it is such a good and noble cause, just and in accordance with justice, we certify by this letter (although we would not lack the privileges of the most illustrious and once famous kings of Poland) that the long-accepted custom and usage is continued and maintained to this day: namely, the elders of all craft guilds, or guild masters, elect twenty persons from among the merchants; and the merchants in turn elect and designate twenty from among the elders of the craft guilds. To all these are added eleven jurors of the ordinary municipal law of Kraków. And we make it known that such, and no other, is our method of electing the forty men. In testimony of which, our seal has been attached to this letter. Given in Kraków on the penultimate day of the month of December in the year of our Lord one thousand five hundred and seventy-eight. [Seal:] [On a parchment strip at the bottom, a round red wax seal is preserved in a dark wax bowl; in the field of the seal, the figure of a bishop with raised hands/crosier, in the rim a majuscule inscription:] + S[...] SCABINORVM [...] CIVITATIS [...] CRACOVIEN[SIS] [...] [Verso:] [In red ink on the right:] – Third rubric, letter C, number 23. [Below in pencil/ink:] 3. C. 23 [In the center at the top in ink:] Method of the Kraków forty-men college of the year 1578 C. Number: 7. [Below:] Chest 1, no. 28 [On the left at the bottom:] Number 7. [Ink seal at the top, oval with the coat of arms of Lwów:] ARCHIWUM AKT DAWNYCH MIASTA LWOWA

NOS ADVOCATVS et Scabini Iuris ordinarij Ciuilis Cracouiensis. Significamus tenore praesentium quibus expedit vniuersis. Quod coram nobis personaliter comparens Honoratus Paulus Scserbicz Ciuitatis Leopoliensis Notarius, petijt a nobis modum eligendorum quadraginta virorum apud nos hactenus obseruatum sibi dari, idque propter Decretum Sac[rae] R[egiae] M[ajes]tis Regiae, de data sabatho ante festa Pentecostes proximo Anno domini Millesimo, quingentesimo Septuagesimo septimo, inter Spectabilem Senatum et Communitatem Leopoliensem latum et promulgatum. Quo Decreto Sac[ra] R[egia] M[ajes]tas, vt iuxta ordinem et modum Ciuitatis Cracouiensis in eligendis Quadraginta Viris sese conseruent gerantq[ue] iniungere ipsis dignata est. Huic illius petitioni vtpote tam bono et honesto instituto vti iustae et aequitati consentaneae, nos denique annuentes, hisce praesentibus testatum facimus (:etsi quidem nobis Priuilegia S[erenissim]orum et Notatu olim Regum Poloniae non deessent:) morem consuetudinemq[ue] antiquitus receptam, ad hunc vsq[ue] diem continuari et obseruari: Vt videlicet omnium Conuberniorum Seniores alias Cechowie eligant Viginti personas ex Mercatoribus: Mercatores vicissim ex Senioribus Conubernioru[m] itidem Viginti deligant et assignent. His vero omnibus iuris ordinarij Ciuilis Cracouiensis Vndecim Scabini adiuncti sunt. Atq[ue] hanc et non aliam esse rationem apud nos eligendorum Quadraginta Virorum notum facimus. Harum quibus sigillum nostrum est appensum testimonio literarum. Datum Cracouiae die penultima Mensis Decembris. Anno domini Millesimo, quingentesimo septuagesimo OCTAVO. [Pieczęć:] [Na pasku pergaminowym od spodu zachowana okrągła pieczęć z czerwonego wosku w misce z ciemnego wosku; w polu pieczęci postać biskupa ze wzniesionymi rękami/pastorałem, w otoku napis majuskułowy:] + S[...] SCABINORVM [...] CIVITATIS [...] CRACOVIEN[SIS] [...] [Verso:] [Czerwonym atramentem po prawej:] - Rubrica Tertia Litt[era] C. N[um]ro 23tio. [Poniżej ołówkiem/atramentem:] 3. C. 23tio [Pośrodku u góry tuszem:] Forma Quadragintaviratus Cracov[iensis] a[nn]o 1578 C. N[um]ro: 7. [Poniżej:] Arca 1ma No 28 [Po lewej u dołu:] N[um]ro 7. [Pieczęć tuszowa u góry, owalna z herbem Lwowa:] ARCHIWUM AKT DAWNYCH MIASTA LWOWA