Grigori Stroganov

At the table

Kvass as the universal drink

Kvass, a fermented drink made from rye flour and malt, served as the universal daily beverage for the lower classes.

What people wore

A single lifetime festive outfit

Peasants often prepared one high-quality outfit in their youth that was kept for their entire lives to be worn only on the most important feast days.

Getting around

Essential road gear and carriages

Travelers commonly used specialized chests called pogrebetz, which featured internal partitions to hold essential items like tea-pots, glass carafes with rum, and milk jugs for long journeys. Many peasants used simple, horse-drawn carts known as telegi, which were frequently built without iron tires, making them highly susceptible to damage on rough roads.

Work

Earnings of Volga boatmen

In the 1810s, boatmen on the Volga earned about 300 rubles per season for their labor. However, the later introduction of steamboats caused these earnings to drop significantly, to between 60 and 90 rubles.

Music

Village musicians and popular instruments

During festival gatherings, village musicians played instruments including the balalaika, violin, horn, and the dudka, a flute-like pipe used primarily by men.

Daily life

Low rates of peasant literacy and education

Literacy among serfs was extremely low, with estimates not exceeding 1%. Education was largely confined to home training by local sextons or clerks, often limited to reading, writing, and basic arithmetic.