Kazimierz Franciszek Czarnkowski

What people wore

Peasant Wardrobe Retention

In 1613, a married peasant couple’s clothing included shirts, sheepskin coats, headcloths, and leather shoes, showing that families often retained and reused older items alongside new ones.

Daily life

Modest wooden peasant homes

Peasant homes were modest wooden farmhouses, with some in Samogitia using a numas with an open central fireplace for cooking and heating. Others used stoves, sometimes without chimneys, which released smoke directly into the living space.

Work

Peasant work days far exceeded urban crafts

Peasant workers in rural Malopolska were required to work approximately 300 days per year, which was 110 days more than those employed in urban crafts.

Music

Stryjanka dance at home

The stryjanka dance, performed at home to the accompaniment of a violin, consisted of a stately march followed by a lively mazurka.

At the table

Staple foods in peasant diets

A peasant diet during this period was primarily based on rye bread, with adults consuming 0.6 to 0.9 kilograms daily, alongside porridge, peas, and cabbage.

Getting around

Average daily travel distances

Travel was slow, with people on foot covering 20–25 km per day and carriages covering 25–30 km per day. Large magnate processions were similarly slow, often traveling only 25–30 km daily.

What it cost

Rapidly rising livestock prices

At the beginning of the 17th century, the price of an ox rose rapidly, starting at around 300 grosz in 1600 and tripling over the next 30 years.