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Barbara Kiszka

1570

3 facts1 source

Facts and their sources

  • Born1570not verified1 source

A life in time

  1. 1570

    Born

  2. 11 May 1585

    A daughter is born

Family

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Partner

Children · 1

During her lifetime

She lived through 11 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like.

General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.

The 1570s · Barbara is born

In the news1569–1574

Famine and price crisis of 1569-1574

Between 1569 and 1574, a severe famine and price crisis struck the region, causing mass death among the poorest residents, while wealthy nobles remained largely unaffected. During 1573 and 1574, a 2.2-kilogram loaf of rye bread cost an unskilled worker in Krakow between 32% and 40% of their daily wage.

At the table

Everyday drinks and home brewing

Beer was a primary everyday beverage, often brewed within the household using large tubs and cauldrons, while mead was also a common drink.

What people wore

Women's Wardrobe Value

Women's clothing was often twice as expensive as men's, with a set including a shirt, skirt, and corset reaching a value of 52 gold coins.

Getting around

Daily travel speed for commoners

In the second half of the 16th century, the average speed for travelers on foot or in carts laden with goods was about 25–30 km per day.

What it cost

Food affordability for workers

A worker could purchase a chicken for 1 grossus, a goose for 1.5 to 2 grossi, or a cluster of 60 eggs for 3 grossi with their daily wage.

Music

Social rules in the stryjanka dance

In the dance known as stryjanka, the violinist led the household members in the first part, while respectable people refrained from dancing the second, more lively part to observe others instead.

Daily life

Education and literacy expectations

Schooling was highly valued by the nobility to prepare children for public service, and by the second half of the 16th century, commoners' children made up over half of the students at the Krakow Academy. For those who could not read or write, the label of idiot or simpleton was commonly used, regardless of status.