Amalie of Nassau-Dietz

Getting around

Regulated Fares and Timed Travel

Travel costs were fixed by regulation, such as three stuivers for the Delft-Rotterdam summer trip, and hourglasses were used on boats to ensure ships did not pause too long at stops. Children up to age two traveled for free, while those up to twelve paid half price.

Daily life

Safe drinking water alternatives and collection

Fresh water was often scarce and unreliable, so families drank small beer, which was safer because the brewing process killed harmful bacteria through heat. Wealthier households also captured rainwater on their roofs, storing it in cisterns beneath the house for cooking and washing.

What people wore

Festive winter skating layers

During winter, people of all classes went ice skating and wore extra layers of wool under their everyday clothes. These layers were intentionally visible to add a touch of festivity to the otherwise drab winter landscape.

Music

Widespread use of cheap songbooks

Songbooks were published in great numbers and sold cheaply, allowing ordinary people to sing popular melodies at home and work despite church leaders often frowning upon secular songs.

At the table

Bread as the Dietary Cornerstone

Bread was the essential element of the diet, sometimes eaten as sop—a mixture of bread and vegetables—or as sweet treats like poffertjes and oliekoecken. Poor families often relied on dense, dark rye bread as their primary source of calories.