from Hacker News

Reasons medieval people slept in cupboards

by elijahparker on 1/23/24, 2:07 AM with 92 comments

  • by morkalork on 1/23/24, 4:36 AM

    This winter, my cats have figured out how to open the door on a vintage armoire and have taken to sleeping enclosed in it on piles of folded clothes so there's definitely an innate appeal to the closet bed.

  • by meristohm on 1/23/24, 2:45 PM

    One of the most memorable sleeps I've had is sleeping on the middle shelf of a closet in northern Japan during winter in a poorly-insulated house with minimal heat. I left the sliding door open a crack, snuggled into my sleeping bag under extra blankets, and slept about ten hours.

  • by pfix on 1/23/24, 2:42 PM

    For me, one important bit is missing.

    > Alcoves were hygienically problematic, as the straw was sometimes only rarely changed, ventilation was poor and food supplies were often stored under the alcoves in farmhouses. To combat tuberculosis, the Baupolizei [government institution in germany responsible for building codes] took action against alcoves from the end of the 19th century. In the Free State of Oldenburg, the health insurance companies paid 100 Reichsmark per removed alcove in 1926.

    Source: https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alkoven_(Bettnische)

    I would assume that in other european countries the situation was similar.

  • by JKCalhoun on 1/23/24, 5:13 AM

    When I was young and had a bunk bed it was pretty normal to box the lower bunk in with sheets, cushions from the couch — whatever — just to make it into a cave-like thing.

    Suddenly I want something like this again.

  • by oftenwrong on 1/23/24, 4:14 AM

    This seems like the sort of thing one would read about in https://lowtechmagazine.com/

    They mentioned hooded chairs and bed canopies: https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/02/restoring-the-old-...

  • by readthenotes1 on 1/23/24, 1:40 PM

    These remind me of one of Christopher Alexander's design patterns. He said children's rooms should be actually a room with a shared play space in the middle and cubbies built into the walls on the side with curtains for privacy.

  • by Ekaros on 1/23/24, 2:55 PM

    We often forget just how revolutionary proper insulation and central heating really is. For example in many climates castles were not great places to live in. You simply can't heat that amount of stone and space effectively. And similar thing also went to most buildings.

  • by leobg on 1/23/24, 5:22 PM

  • by Ironlikebike on 1/23/24, 4:41 PM

    Having had a mouse infestation at my cottage that took over a year to resolve, this would have been a great way to keep the critters out of and off the bedding during that time. I suspect for keeping guests and migrant workers in barns and out-buildings per the article, this would have been a great mechanism to keep rodents away while sleeping.

  • by deafpolygon on 1/23/24, 9:37 AM

    I would use these if there was a modern take in it. There's so much wasted space. All that space above my bed is unused; all the space underneath becomes a magnet for dust and dirt.

    I would need to be able to sit up in my bed and get in/out without bumping my head. An integrated light would be nice- for reading, along with some chargingp ports and integrated shelving along with a built-in central air unit with a heater/airco for the hot + warm nights would save a ton of electricity in the extreme seasons.

    And if you live in a home with others, a fair bit of privacy is always lovely.

    I'm shocked this isn't a thing yet.

  • by RecycledEle on 1/23/24, 1:32 PM

    I rediscovered this by accident when my power was out and it was very cold. Sleeping in a closet keeps you quite warm.

    The downside is that you can run out of air, especially if someone is very flatulent.

  • by cardanome on 1/23/24, 3:06 PM

    I am always surprised how far pop "science" articles are willing to stretch the medieval period. 19th century, really?

    The medieval period normally ends at around 1500. There is like one 13th century source in the article, the rest hat NOTHING to do with the medieval period at all.

    Not to mention these beds seem to have been mostly popular in Britain and maybe some parts of continental Europe and are absolutely not typical for how medieval people slept in most of Europe.

    Also the whole lacking space and multiple people sleeping together in one bed for lack of it thing: yes Victorian era maybe, in the Middle Ages with low population density, surely not typical.

    This is absolutely bogus science and BBC should be ashamed writing such crap.

  • by RyanOD on 1/23/24, 5:40 AM

    I would love this. I've never understood why humans waste square footage on large bedrooms. Seriously, I could sleep in a closet and be perfectly happy.

  • by rawgabbit on 1/23/24, 6:04 AM

    It looks like a wooden version of Tokyo capsule hotels.

  • by tim333 on 1/23/24, 9:32 PM

    I've slept in kind of a modern version in Singapore like this https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Customized-Good-quali... They are quite a good solution for backpacker type accom. I don't know if they could be used for homeless folk?

  • by rintakumpu on 1/23/24, 2:22 PM

    Make it soundproof and take my money.

  • by ametrau on 1/23/24, 3:01 PM

    > could reportedly sleep up to five people

    How?? Are they sleeping on top of each other?

  • by porkbeer on 1/23/24, 4:50 PM

    Seems like it was made so you can sleep during the daytime as well, allowing shift work.

  • by sparrish on 1/23/24, 4:55 PM

    But why are they up off the floor? I read the article... did I miss that part?

  • by peetabix on 1/23/24, 6:01 AM

    Wasn't the average human slightly shorter than today?

  • by binary132 on 1/23/24, 4:46 PM

    Mom found the medieval orgone accumulator

  • by dewbrite on 1/23/24, 4:16 AM

    I can't tell from the pictures, but these almost look too small to sleep in. Would people curl up inside them? I'd like to see a human for scale

  • by incomingpain on 1/23/24, 2:22 PM

    It's bad because you are isolated. You need to get grounded in order to sleep properly:

    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15650465/

    Big fluffy beds way off the floor are bad. It's interesting to note that the above finds it most effective for women. The below is most effective for men.

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10105021/

    It shouldn't actually matter your sex.

    To add, buddhist monks must sleep on the ground and lay followers are expected to sleep on the ground on occasion.