Magda Lupescu

Magda Lupescu, known as Princess Elena of Romania after 1947, was the mistress and later wife of King Carol II of Romania.

Festive accessories and courtship customs

For Sunday dances, young peasant women would adorn themselves with numerous strings, pins, flowers, and necklaces made of beads and coins. Additionally, young men often stole the long, colorful girdles worn by women, wearing them themselves to show they were interested in the girls.

Peasant women's daily and festive attire

Peasant women often wore white smock-frocks embroidered with black, red, and orange, sometimes shot with threads of gold and silver for special occasions. They also wore red gowns and yellow or red headkerchiefs while working in the fields.

Călușeri and Bătuta dance performances

In the late 19th century, men's Călușeri and Bătuta dances were performed at balls, festivals, and even at New Year's celebrations, often featuring dancers in traditional national costumes.

Impromptu village musical competitions

During village parties, guests engaged in impromptu musical performances and competitive shouting matches, where men and women split into groups to trade satirical verses.

Hardships of road travel

For most ordinary people, long-distance travel via carriage remained prohibitively expensive and arduous, often relying on roads that became nearly impassable mud tracks during autumn and spring. In poor conditions, carriage speeds could drop to as low as 4 km/h, making journeys between towns exceptionally slow.

Warning the public of trains

Early railway operations were so unfamiliar that a rider on horseback was sometimes sent ahead of the train blowing a horn to warn people and animals to stay clear of the tracks.

Lighting relied on oil lamps

For an ordinary peasant house, the main lighting at night was a small clay oil lamp (opaiț) with a weak, flickering flame; after a few hours from sunset, the home was effectively dark. Candles were reserved for richer meals.

Peasant homes were tiny and dim

In parts of rural Romania, ordinary people lived in semi-subterranean dwellings described as a deep “hole” in the ground with a single main room where families slept together; light was very poor and ventilation limited. Windows were tiny and covered with animal bladder or oil-soaked paper to make openings usable.

Mamaliga was the primary daily staple food

For ordinary families, mamaliga, a simple cornmeal porridge, was the daily staple, often eaten with onions, garlic, or dairy products instead of bread. Bread was typically considered a luxury reserved for special occasions and major holidays.

Meat was reserved for special holidays

Even in households that raised animals, meat like ox or buffalo pastrami was rarely eaten, usually reserved only for major Christian holidays. Eggs, butter, and poultry were frequently sold to bring money into the home rather than being consumed by the family.

Cost of a pair of boots

At the beginning of the 20th century, a pair of custom-made boots cost 10 to 11 lei, and by 1913, the price of a pair of men's boots rose to 15 lei.

Worker daily wages in the early 1900s

In the early 1900s, a day laborer typically earned 2 lei per day, while a skilled worker earned between 3 and 4 lei.

Urban Wages and Labor

Urban laborers, such as bricklayers or carpenters in Timisoara, could earn 1 crown per hour in 1901, while unskilled day laborers earned 3 crowns per day.

Family Field Work Routine

Families often traveled together in barred carts to their plots of land, where they would camp out to work from morning until late in the evening.