Dirty wallpaper can seem like a monumental cleaning task, but evidently, people in the olden days had a simple solution for this chore: white bread. Yes, historically, people would use white bread to clean wallpaper, according to The Guardian's interview with U.K. historical preservation organization English Heritage.
First off, it's important to remember that people of the past didn't have the scientific know-how and technology we have today. So they did the best with what they had and according to English Heritage's head of collections conservation, Amber Xavier-Rowe, their methods often worked.
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When it comes to white bread in particular, Xavier-Rowe told The Guardian, "You do get crumbs, so it's not super-practical for us, to be honest. But if you can't get hold of the stuff we use, then it's perfectly fine. You've just got to vacuum your crumbs up." She adds that your white bread should also be fresh, since stale bread would make for an abrasive mess.
According to The New York Times, which spoke with The Domestic Revolution author Ruth Goodman, the white bread cleaning approach likely came about during the 1600s. If this is something you'd like to leave in the 1600s, you can follow our modern wallpaper cleaning advice here.