10 Things about Home in the 17th Century

From the series 10 things...

What did everyday life at home look like in the 17th century? Ten surprising facts about what people wore, did and thought. From potty chairs to ruffs, from refrigerators to board games.

Plan your visit

The museum moves you to Rembrandt, Vermeer en Van Gogh. Will you come too?

Rijksmuseum tickets

Open door

Home was less private than it is today. Front doors often remained open, and it was perfectly normal for children, neighbours or acquaintances to just walk in. Everyone in the area could listen in. And if they didn’t, there was always God, who saw everything.

Door, Ouderkerk aan de IJssel, 1655. Various types of wood.

Clean linen

People did not often wash themselves with water. Instead, they put on clean linen to look fresh and neat. This was usually bright white: the sign of cleanliness.

This men’s ruff is made from more than 17 meters of fabric, carefully pleated. Both wealthy men and women wore such ruffs. This is even the only surviving example of a pleated ruff in the Netherlands!

Ruff, Noordelijke Nederlanden, ca. 1615-1635. Linen batiste.

17th century refrigerator

People didn’t have refrigerators, but they did have a 'spinde': a cupboard with ventilation grilles that allowed air to circulate. This kept food fresh longer. They were usually made of cheap wood, but a coat of paint could make them look much fancier – like real oak.

Storage cupboard (spinde), Northern Netherlands, ca. 1610–1630. Pine and fir wood.

Washing hands

Washing hands before meals was an important rule of etiquette. In wealthier circles, the water was perfumed with rosewater, making it smell especially nice. The wealthy Agneta Deutz did this in style, with this silver ewer and basin set.

Lampet set with the coat of arms of Gerard Meerman, Andries Grill (1604–1665). Silver, 1649.

Running the household

According to the rulebook, the man was the head of the household. In practice, however, it was often the woman who held the reins: she distributed and organized the tasks. Girls were prepared for this role from an early age.

The young Eva Wtewael is portrayed here by her father as the perfect lady of the house, engaged in needlework with a Bible or psalm book within reach.

Portrait of Eva Wtewael (1607–1635), by Joachim Wtewael (1566–1638). Oil on panel, 1628. Collection Centraal Museum Utrecht.

Potty chair

Parents must have found it tempting: strapping their not-yet-potty-trained children into a so-called “potty chair.” The seat had a hole with a little pot underneath, so the child could easily relieve itself. Handy, right?

Yet the chair was strongly discouraged at the time. According to physician Steven Blankaart, spending too much time in the potty chair would lead to children with ‘’saggy bellies’’.

Trompe-l’œil with child in a chamber pot, by Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck. Oil on panel, ca. 1654. Collection Noordbrabants Museum, ’s-Hertogenbosch; long-term loan from JK Art Foundation.

Virtuous cupboard

Linen cupboards had a prominent place in the home. The doors of this example depict biblical scenes of Susanna and the Elders. Because of her faith and chastity, she was seen as a role model for women. Every time you opened the cupboard, you were reminded of Susanna’s story. Even while folding laundry, you reflected on living a virtuous life.

Cabinet with Biblical motifs, Northern Netherlands, ca. 1630–1650. Oak and ebony

Working together

In many households, the couple ran a home-based business together. This portrait by Jan Steen hung in the kitchen of a baker’s family in Leiden. While Arent baked the bread, Catharina ran the shop. Proudly, she presents the fresh loaves: pretzels, rolls and against the wall a duivekater (a festive loaf).

Portrait of Arent Oostwaard and Catharina Keizerswaard, by Jan Havicksz Steen (ca. 1625–1679). Leiden, 1658.

''Hansje in the cellar''

Pour your wine into this bowl, and a little flap opens to reveal a tiny figure — a symbol of pregnancy. The bowl, known as a “hansje in de kelder” (“little Hans in the cellar”), was used during a toast to the unborn child.

Because of the high mortality rate for both mother and child, this was far from a carefree drink. The risks of alcohol were less well known at the time, so the expectant mother joined in the drinking as well.

Hansje in the Cellar, by Gerrit Stoffels (1591–1652). Harlingen, ca. 1600–1650. Silver.

No child's play

Today, the Game of the Goose is an innocent children’s pastime, but in the 17th century people gambled on it. The board represents the course of life: from childhood to old age, past the bridge, the inn, and death. Whoever landed on square 61 had to propose a toast.

Game of the Goose, by Claes Jansz. Visscher II (1587–1652). Amsterdam, ca. 1612–1652. Engraving.

10 things about home in the 17th century

Everyday life at home, 400 years ago

10 things about Fiona Tan: Monomania

10 things about Crossings

Photography from the Indian Subcontinent

10 things about Isamu Noguchi

Playful sculptures and design classics

10 things about American Photography

Maria Sibylla Merian’s insects of Suriname

Famous for her detailed illustrations of insects and plants

10 things Point of View

The collection seen from a gender perspective

10 things to know about Lee Ufan

Breitners schildersmodellen Geesje en Anna

Maar wie waren deze meisjes eigenlijk?

10 things to know about the lights of the Rijksmuseum

Ensemble of four silver salt cellars made by the famous Amsterdam silversmith Johannes Lutma Ensemble of four silver salt cellars made by the famous Amsterdam silversmith Johannes Lutma

10 things to know about the salt cellars by celebrated silversmith Johannes Lutma

10 things to know about Richard Long

10 representations of the history of disability

An impression of physical and mental diversity in the Rijksmuseum collection

BK-18283-A BK-18283-A

10 things to know about XXL PAPER

Big, bigger, biggest!

10 things you need to know about the Oppenheimer family’s Meissen porcelain

A fragile past

10 things you need to know about Catharina van Hemessen

Who was Catharina van Hemessen and why was she internationally successful?

10 fascinating facts about portraits

What stories do these subjects tell?

10 objects with a connection to slavery

Rijksmuseum & Slavery

10 x Queering the Rijksmuseum

Queer narratives in the collection

10 x Christmas

From the fate of the Christmas tree to Christmas cards

10 x Cats in the Rijksmuseum

For all the cat lovers

The Milkmaid The Milkmaid

The top 10 artworks in 2019

What did you search for the most?

10 times witches, monsters and ghosts

The Halloween edition

10 things about Herman Doomer