Meet the Middle Ages
BackAn ordinary day in the country
An ordinary day in the country might have been like this:
Kersti and Nils live on a farm in the woods. They have three children: Ingeborg, Hans and Per. One daughter is dead, and another child is on its way. Nils’ parents also live on the farm. From time to time, the family employs a farm-hand.
The dwelling-house a grey, wooden building, just like the cow-shed. There is also a privy, a small smithy and a bath-house or sauna.
Kersti gets up early in the morning to milk the cows. When she returns, the house is warm. The family have porridge for breakfast which they eat from a shared bowl. They also have a piece of bread, some cold meat and beer or water.
The work on the farm is very intensive during certain periods, and at other times it is not so busy. On an ordinary autumn day after the harvest, the farmer goes out to clear the field of stones. Ingeborg, who is ten years old, takes the cows to graze. Hans, who is six, plays on the outskirts of the woods. Per, aged two, has to be looked after all the time, as he wants to explore everything on the farm. Suddenly, he sees something by the stream and runs off. Fortunately, his mother sees him in time and stops him from falling into the water.
In the afternoon, Nils, his father and the farm-hand go into the woods to find some good wood to make char-coal from. The coal is needed in the smithy. Mother Kersti and Nils’ mother take care of the animals on the farm. They also start to bake all the bread for Christmas. In time, they will have to weave cloth from the newly spun wool.
In the evening they have supper together. They eat cooked root vegetables, boiled ling and bread. As usual, they drink beer and water. When dusk falls, they sit by the fire-place and tell each other stories about trolls and elves, frightening tales of fairies and Näcken, but also the legend of the beautiful St Cecilia. To keep the fire going through the night, they might chant "Aske pladaske, aske..." After saying evening prayer, they go to bed and listen to the howling wind before falling asleep.