Gifts have long since been unwrapped. Someone is trying on a new sweater, someone else sprinkles on the received perfume. There is no shortage of gadgets and the latest technology. And what was it like 100 years ago? Exactly the same!
Presents appear under a beautifully decorated tree. Some are rich, others a bit more modest.
Newspapers come to the aid of those who have no idea what to offer to their loved ones. And no, it is not a modern invention. We have been looking for gift advice in newspapers for two centuries.
Minimum version - lottery ticket
An announcement in "Czas" of December 24, 1885 by the Art and Literary Club in Krakow suggested an ideal idea:
The most beautiful gift for Christmas or New Years is the Lottery Lottery Art.
Shopping done, cards shipped, gifts ready. It is possible to celebrate.
A similar idea for a gift was presented in his advertisement by H. Fuchs' banking house in Budapest:
The most beautiful, practical and cheapest gift for Christmas and New Years is undeniably the main prize of PLN 5,000.
A year later, on December 24, 1886, "Czas" tempted readers with 50,000 Rhenish zlotys (zlotys) offered by the Hungarian jockey club in the lottery with tickets for one zloty.
How about socks?
When the fate did not seem appropriate, traditional socks and underwear could be purchased in the Cloth Hall for 1.6 Rhenish. "Time" of December 24, 1885. for this purpose he recommended the company M. Bejer and a company that had it only and exclusively:
Practical Christmas and New Year gifts in an abundant selection, in a very elegant way, at the cheapest, fixed factory prices.
Hall. A perfect place to buy a gift?
Did underwear have to be boring and limited to traditional cuts only? Not at all! The inhabitants of Krakow who bought "Czas" on December 24, 1898. they found out that you could also get a much fancier dessous:
Sensational news! Short corsets, French cut. The most appropriate Christmas gift for women is a fashionable, cheap, good and comfortable corset from the renowned Federer and Piesen steam factory in Prague.
All accessories could be bought in the stores of Kazimierz Baum in Kraków and Rzeszów, as well as Kamil Baum in Tarnów and Józef Accord in Kołomyja.
Shopkeepers advertised in "Czas" of December 24, 1893. encouraging potential customers. Who wouldn't be tempted?
Warning! By doing our purchases together for four stores, we are able to sell at very low prices. Complete sale in a store in Krakow at extremely low prices.
How about a book?
For lovers of Polish, German and French youth literature, she offered gifts For Christmas. D. E. Friedlein's bookstore in Krakow ” which was exactly what was announced in "Czas" on December 24, 1885. In turn, the Catholic bookstore of Dr. Władysław Miłkowski in Krakow in the pages of "Czas" on the eve of 1891. recommended books and prayer books : in frames from the most modest to the most exquisite.
Haberdashery, electronics, books. The gift fan has not changed for years.
The bookstore of S. Krzyżanowski and L. Frommer in Kraków stated in the same issue of the newspaper:
A new collection of folk carols, the prettiest and most used and not yet known, collected here [...] by St Ochmanski, the conductor of the choir at the Church of the Virgin Mary.
Art connoisseurs were tempted by "Czas" of December 24, 1865. Everything that could be purchased at ul. Stolarska 478 in Krakow.
Pictures are recommended as a particularly elegant gift for Christmas Eve and New Years Eve […] from the Artistic Department Hoelzl in Olomouc […]. Then there are also those pleading for the gift […] in our Trade we find Berlin and Vienna Oil Lamps in a wide selection and at very moderate prices.
Holidays, Christmas and almost after Christmas…
Something for a real man…
Fans of technological novelties, following the announcement from the Christmas Eve "Czas" in 1893, should have gone to Wilhelm Kleinberg, who ran the plant at ul. Floriańska 1 in Krakow. The author of the advertisement also emphasized that he is willing to provide any advice regarding the handling of the purchased goods.
The best Christmas gift for everyone is a camera with which an amateur can reproduce people's views, landscapes, etc. .
Gifts for real men could be found at Jan Nowotny in Prague. In the pages of "Czas" of December 24, 1891. offered the latest hunting and sports weapons; in addition, hunting bags, cartridge tubes, etc. .
And under the Christmas tree ... something for a real man and elegant lady.
The most original gift could be:
The Sigismund Bell (from Wawel) reduced to 1/36 of its full size. [...] As a national souvenir, this gift should be distributed everywhere where only the Polish language can be heard .
This unique souvenir could be purchased, according to "Czas" of December 24, 1897, incl. at the custodian of the Matejko House, because all the income was allocated to this institution. Ingeniously and charitable. A perfect gift?
Sources:
- Łepkowski, Review of Krakow traditions, legends, services, customs, proverbs and properties, Krakow 1866.
- A. Pruszak, About the gentry celebration. traditions of Christmas and Easter in the circle of Polish gentry in the second half of the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century. Warsaw 2006.
- A. Pruszak, About the gentry celebration. The traditions of Christmas and Easter. Warsaw 2011.
- "Time", December 24 numbers 1865-1898.