Existing series suggest wages in London were substantially higher than in other European cities from 1650 to 1800. This paper presents new evidence from the construction sites that supplied the underlying wage data, and uncovers the contractual and organisational context in which it was...

Chapter 1: A short history of builder’s wages in Economic History -- Chapter 2: The market for building -- Chapter 3: Contractors -- Chapter 4: Contracts and ways of working in the building trades -- Chapter 5: What did bosses (in London construction) do? -- Chapter 6: Contracts and Pay at St....