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I’m updating my bibliography on the Portuguese Empire. Are there significant recent publications (last 10–15 years) on Portuguese trade with Brazil during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries?

My research focuses on colonial economies in the Atlantic world. While I'm familiar with classic works by Boxer, Russell?Wood, and Schwartz, I need to incorporate newer scholarship. I’m particularly interested in studies that use new methodological approaches (e.g., network analysis, quantitative trade data, or material culture studies) or that revisit topics like smuggling, the role of merchant networks, the impact of gold discoveries, and the integration of Brazil into global markets. Can you point me to key recent authors or titles?

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By Pranav Answered 2 years ago

Yes, the field has been revitalized. Essential recent works include Cátia Antunes’ Globalisation in the Early Modern Period: The Economic Relationship between Amsterdam and Lisbon, 1640–1705 (which reshapes our understanding of Dutch?Portuguese?Brazilian circuits) and Ernesto Castro Leal’s edited volume O Brasil na Monarquia Hispânica: Dinâmicas Imperiais (séculos XVI–XVII), which explores Brazil’s role in Iberian networks. For quantitative trade analysis, see Leonor Freire Costa, M. Rocha, and R. Brites’ An Economic History of Portugal, 1143–2010. The journal Portuguese Studies Review often publishes relevant articles, and a pivotal newer study is Tristan Platt’s work on silver and gold flows integrating Brazil into broader Spanish American contexts. Also, explore “The Atlantic World” series by Brill for recent thematic collections.

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