Ernst Johann Wagner

Getting around

Faster rail travel between major cities

By 1900, the rail journey between Vienna and Budapest had been reduced to four and a half hours, down from approximately six hours when the line first opened.

At the table

Meat was eaten only on weekends

Meat was a luxury, with working families typically eating it only twice a week, usually on Saturdays and Sundays.

What people wore

Everyday footwear and going barefoot

For everyday work, especially in summer, many women and men in rural areas frequently went barefoot or wore simple homemade slippers made of linen or cloth.

Music

Burial of the bass ritual

A unique tradition was the burial of the bass, where musicians played a sorrowful folk spiritual song accompanied by mourners to mark the end of the festive Shrovetide season before Lent. Village musical performances were generally subject to the approval of the local mayor and often the priest.

Daily life

School supplies and student rewards

Students wrote on stone tablets with slate pencils, and if they misbehaved, teachers would strike their palms with a cane. At the end of the school year, well-performing boys were awarded wooden-handled knives, while girls received rosaries.