Station: [19] Wages

“One is usually paid at the end. Or is one? On this renaissance building site wages are paid throughout the day – sometimes even every day. Especially when the craftsmen are being paid. Some of them may receive an actual wage, a previously agreed sum for performing a certain duty. But most of the time, the labourers are paid a daily wage, calculated according to an ancient method: by using a tally stick. Both worker and landlord may document every workday in this manner – every day is represented by a notch on both the landlord’s and the craftsman’s halves of the stick. And for every one of those the labourers receive a daily wage.

But what are they paid with? A common currency is still far off in the 16th century. A diverse range of coins is therefore to be found on the Horst building site: heller and thaler, Brabantian stuber and silver pennies. Those who want to budget their wages have to be good at converting currencies. The landlord doesn’t only pay his workers in cash; part of their wage is made up by the provision of sleeping quarters and comestibles; sometimes a bushel of wheat or a keg of beer. Even though converting all of the above into current terms may be difficult, it is possible to say that wages in Horst at that time are comparatively high. Good work is rewarded accordingly.