Adolph von Sachsen

At the table

Daily beer consumption in northern regions

In northern regions like Münster, beer was the standard everyday beverage, with people consuming between 2 and 3 litres daily. Wine was reserved only for the four most important religious feast days.

What people wore

Class-based clothing regulations and currency limits

Strict regulations controlled social class appearance; for example, commoners were forbidden from wearing gold, silver, pearls, or silk. A wife of a commoner could wear a simple gold ring worth no more than five or six guilders, without gemstones.

Getting around

Most travel was done on foot

Ordinary people primarily traveled between towns on foot, usually covering about 20 kilometers per day. For longer distances, they relied on walking, although they occasionally hitched rides on wagons belonging to farmers or carters.

What it cost

Daily food costs for seven workers

To feed a group of seven workers in 1579, the cost for meals, including meat, bread, and beer, totaled 1 gulden and 3 groschen and 5 pfennig for one day.

Music

Town pipers performed music from towers

Civic musicians known as Stadtpfeifer regularly performed music from church towers and town hall balconies, often using loud brass and wind instruments like the cornett, sackbut, and shawm.

Daily life

Cooking with embers and kettles

Kitchens often featured a large metal kettle for boiling, while smaller quantities were baked in bowls placed on a grid and covered with glowing embers.