Stanisław Lubomirski

What people wore

The everyday jermiak overcoat

Ordinary city dwellers wore the jermiak, a light, collarless, and unlined overcoat that was typically made of grey or black home-made kersey fabric.

Daily life

Limited schooling for peasant children

Peasant children were mostly illiterate and rarely attended parish schools, as parents prioritized their agricultural labor and schools were sparse due to a lack of funding.

Work

The communal harvest tradition of talka

A community tradition called talka required entire families to drop their own urgent work to help with major seasonal harvests on the manor. In return, the host family provided food, drink, dancing, and games for the helpers.

Music

Sutartinės and folk instruments

Traditional sutartinės songs were performed by women, while men played instrumental versions on the kanklės psaltery, skudučiai pan-pipes, and horns.

At the table

Staple foods beyond grain

While meat was typically reserved for wealthier tables or special occasions, salted herring was a common and important preserved fish consumed by city residents and peasants alike. Milk products like butter and curd cheese, often flavored with caraway, were also key staples in the diet of many families.

Getting around

Hiring guards for travel safety

To protect goods while traveling, a merchant in 1586 hired two Tartars for four guilders and required them to swear an oath as a guarantee of safety.

What it cost

Value of animals compared to clothing

For the price of one expensive coat, which was 40 groschen, one could purchase two pigs or two sheep.