Sophie, Duchess Consort of Pomerania-Barth

What people wore

Clothing as an Investment and Charity Gift

Ordinary people took great care of their clothing, which was considered an investment; garments were frequently passed down, gifted, or sold second-hand rather than discarded. In a 1577 charitable donation in Nuremberg, 100 poor men each received a standardized, durable outfit consisting of a black wool coat, a black wool waistcoat, black wool trousers, a black hat, a white linen shirt, and a pair of shoes.

Daily life

Kitchen stoves and built-in water cisterns

Many modest kitchens lacked open hearths, instead using a large, soot-covered stove in a separate room that served for both cooking and heating. Some of these stoves featured built-in water cisterns that provided hot water and a place to boil food like dumplings.

Work

Remarkable Skills of Ordinary People

A Tübingen cobbler reportedly used advanced swimming and breath-holding techniques to dive into dangerous whirlpools in the Neckar River to steal high-quality fish. Such specialized knowledge of swimming was documented in early training manuals, which even suggested using reeds or animal bladders as buoyancy aids.

Music

Moralizing Italian dance songs for students

Teachers and pastors replaced erotic texts of popular Italian dance-songs with moral or devotional words to create acceptable music for schoolboys to sing.

At the table

Grains and vegetables as staples

For ordinary families, grains served as the foundation of the diet in the form of porridges or coarse breads. Vegetables such as turnips, cabbage, and onions were essential daily staples, often cooked with lard or bacon.

Getting around

Travel challenges and gate closures

Traveling was physically demanding, often on unpaved roads through forests or fields, and travelers had to reach their destination before nightfall because city gates were locked at sunset. Common travelers often struggled with bad weather and the lack of comfortable transport, making a simple journey a serious endeavor.

What it cost

Bread Prices and Scarcity

During times of famine, such as in the 1570s, bread was sometimes made with non-traditional ingredients like acorns, bran, or even tree bark. A pound of rye bread in Kraków cost around 0.2 groschen in the early 1570s.