Lietuvos istorijos institutas

The article presents an analysis of the inventories of property that belonged to the women residing in Vilnius from 1658 to 1798: the reasons for their compilation, their patterns, the prevailing categories of property, and the issue of the reliability of these inventories. It also dwells upon on the participation of urban women in the economic life of the city: their engagement in small trade, possession of shops and craft workshops, and their involvement in the realisation of the manufactured commodities. Research found that inventories were most often compiled upon the death of the property owner (69%). However, there are inventories that were drawn up before death in order to avoid future disagreements among the heirs or to resolve an ongoing conflict. Two inventories were compiled due to illness or malaise, and one due to an unexpected departure from the city of Vilnius. The study shows that women residing in Vilnius used to take care not only of their homes, households, and children. They were quite active in the economic life of the city. Sixteen (33.3%) of the inventories mention grocery, cloth, iron, haberdashery, and salt shops in their possession, while five contain information about the craft workshops they owned (bookbinding, goldsmithery, and tanning). Six inventories mention equipment for beer and vodka production, such as breweries, vats, and other vessels for brewing beer and distilling vodka, and describe the different types of beverages: beer, mead, vodka, and wine. Three women residing in Vilnius kept taverns where they sold the beverages they produced.