Anna Catherine of Nassau-Ottweiler

At the table

Avoiding Contaminated Water

Water was rarely drunk, as people relied on beer or watered-down vinegar for safer hydration. Often, drinking water was avoided entirely due to the high risk of contamination from nearby cesspools.

What people wore

Wedding shirts as burial shrouds

The funeral custom was so precise that couples carefully preserved the shirts worn on their wedding day to be used as their burial garments. Additionally, deceased women were often buried with one of their caps, such as the communion cap.

Getting around

River travel from Regensburg to Vienna

Starting in 1696, boats called 'Ordinari' transported passengers down the Danube from Regensburg to Vienna, a distance of about 450 kilometers that took at least one week.

What it cost

Prices for staple food items

Around 1650, a scheffel of wheat cost 36 groschen, while a single chicken was priced at four and a half groschen.

Music

Musical Cradle Devotions and Festive Processions

During Christmas, Jesuits organized cradle devotions, where a constructed cradle containing a figure of the Christ child was rocked to the sound of music. Music was also used in processions, often involving bells, trumpets, military drums, and even the discharge of muskets and cannons.

Daily life

Limited and seasonal schooling

Schooling was not compulsory, and rural children often only attended in winter because they had to work on farms during the summer. Instruction focused primarily on memorizing the Bible to learn how to pray and read scripture.