Marie Margarete von Habsburg

What people wore

Feast day finery and marital status attire

On feast days, rural people wore finer versions of their clothing, such as a blouse made of fine linen (harbene Pfoad) compared to the coarse linen (rupferne Pfoad) worn for daily tasks. Men sometimes distinguished their marital status through their hats, wearing green hats if unmarried and black hats after marriage.

Daily life

Life in the smoke kitchen

Cooking happened in smoke kitchens where food was prepared over open fires, often sharing space with poultry kept inside at night.

Work

Distance covered by daily messengers

Messengers traveling on foot were capable of walking between 25 and 40 kilometers a day, while dedicated runners could cover over 60 kilometers.

Music

Jewish musicians for all classes

Jewish dance bands were active in Moravia during this century and provided musical entertainment for all social classes.

At the table

Creative peasant food substitutions

Peasant families practiced creative food substitutions, using names like false meat soup or false almond cake to describe dishes made from simpler, available ingredients.

Getting around

Dangers of traveling by day

Travelers mostly journeyed during the day because roads were rough, uneven, and prone to dangers like highwaymen and accidents, making nighttime travel unsafe.

What it cost

Daily wages for laborers

In the late 17th century, day laborers earned about 6 kreuzer for women and up to 18 kreuzer for some skilled laborers like carpenters.