The Tudor Society

Tudor Cleaning Quiz

Claire Ridgway

This quiz should be nice and easy if you listened to my recent Claire Chats video on cleaning and doing the washing in Tudor times. Good luck!

Tudor cleaning

Q1) What could be sprinkled on fur which had stiffened during storage to soften it?

Lavender oil

Soapy water

Milk

Wine

Correct!
Wrong! The answer is wine.

Q2) What was the name for the process of soaking linen in lye?

Lying

Tilting

Bucking

Malting

Correct!
Wrong! It was called "bucking".

Q3) Lye was made from mixing water with potash and filtering it, but what was potash?

Dried soapwort

Fermented urine

Burnt straw

Wood ash

Correct! Or burnt dry ferns.
Wrong! It was woodash or burnt dry ferns.

Q4) Starch was made from cereals or from .......

Nettles

Cuckoo pint

Dandelions

Acorns

Correct!
Wrong! From the plant cuckoo pint.

Q5) Which of these plants was used for scouring pots?

Mare's Tail

Thyme

Rosemary

Marjoram

Correct!
Wrong! Mare's Tail was used.

Q6) A damp cloth dipped in ....... could also be used for scouring pots.

Salt

Bicarbonate of soda

Chalk

Sand

Correct! They used sharp river sand.
Wrong! The answer is sand. They used sharp river sand.

Q7) Which type of leaf did the Goodman of Paris recommend laying on the floor to catch fleas?

Sycamore

Alder

Oak

Ash

Correct!
Wrong! He recommended alder leaves.

Q8) English soap was made from boiling lye and .........

Animal fat

Soap wort

Olive oil

Sunflower oil

Correct!
Wrong! The answer is animal fat.

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