Duarte Nuno, Duke of Braganza

Music

Instruments and foot-tapping dance customs

In the Ziller Valley, traditional wedding music was performed by ensembles consisting of two fiddles, a diatonic accordion, a Tyrolean folk harp, and a string bass. Dancers at these events frequently tapped their toes in time with the music, using specific patterns for two-four and three-four time signatures.

Daily life

Housing for the poor in Vienna

In 1909, around 66,000 people in Vienna were bed-renters who did not have their own home and paid to use a bed for only a few hours. Many tenement buildings lacked running water, toilets, and electricity, requiring residents to collect water from a corridor tap called a Bassena.

What it cost

The molhadura contract tradition

In rural areas, workers were sometimes hired through a traditional practice called the molhadura, where a capataz paid for a glass of brandy to seal a weekly employment contract. This custom was compared to a human meat auction due to the lack of regulation.

What people wore

Infant swaddling for physical development

To help them grow straight, infants in the Kirchberg region were placed in a swaddling cushion for several months, which prevented them from moving or kicking.

Getting around

Oxen rescue services for stuck vehicles

Due to poorly maintained roads, peasants in some areas made money by using teams of oxen to rescue vehicles that became stuck in deep ruts and holes.

At the table

Ideal middle-class meals and coffee house culture

Before the war, the ideal middle-class meal consisted of a three-course menu featuring soup, a main dish of meat with side dishes, and dessert. Intellectuals frequented coffee houses around 1900 to enjoy coffee drinks like the Melange.