The background and the paths of evolution of the concepts of value and price in the era of natural economy are examined. A special attention is paid to Thomas Aquinas’ doctrine which had determined the key trends of the European thought for many ages and underlay most conceptions of just society. Scrutinized is the attitude of medieval thinkers to trade and usury, money exchange and bargains regulation. Finally, it is traced how the growth of trade and other “extended” economic forms (loan, currency transaction, etc.) had breached the first gaps in the prevailing views and enabled the advent of market oriented ideas.

Economy and entrepreneurship. 2011. Vol. 5. N 1. P. 70 – 79.

 Keywords: value, price, exchange, labor, medieval Europe.

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