How do you make a roof? Thatchers in Kampen

Before there were no Syltigers. When the employees of Hansi and Jan Finke climb up on roofs passersby stop and stare: thatching is the oldest and perhaps the most attractive Kampen craft.

Formerly roof thatches were even cut in Kampen. Up at the bird decoy for example. Today the island would be too bare and all Kampen thatch now comes from Sylt raw material. But thatchers still come from Kampen. Today thatch lasts – depending on how the Sylt weather treats it – between 40 and 60 years. This wonderful natural substance is a great insulator, warm in winter, cool in summer, which is why it’s so expensive as the attractive alternative to tile: roofing a single family home can set you back at least 30,000 Euro roughly, everything included. In exchange it looks great and is all-natural. For many holidaymakers it’s even quite simply a synonym for Sylt, not least because of the rigid Kampen planning regulations which has even laid down rules on the use of thatch since 1920. Thatching is a craft in itself. For centuries, from generation to generation, it has been passed on from master to pupil and it is only since a few years ago that it has become a trade requiring an apprenticeship merely in the form of a specialised "Journeyman roofer, subject thatch" course. Machines are of absolutely no use on a thatched roof. It can only use handcraft and a lot of instinct. The bundle of thatch is opened by hand, the individual stalks are then pulled into shape and placed upright. In the next step the thatch is placed under a storey and can then – arranged in this way" – be attached to the rafters with hooks and wires, and hence almost stitched together. Then it is beaten until it becomes flat, beginning with a strength of up to nearly 40 centimetres and ending with a thickness of nearly 30 centimetres towards the ridge. Finke thatch roofers have been based in Kampen since 1963. Since 1983 it has been managed by Hans-Otto Finke. Since 2000 the son of the house, master thatcher and junior partner Jan Finke has been part the team. There is hardly a house in Kampen where a Finke has not worked. Up to a wind force of 8 the thatchers can be seen on the roof and not one has been blown down. When it’s too cold or wet, work stops in winter. That’s when the men move into sheds and cover birds’ houses or work on the distinctive island bus shelters which are likewise covered with thatch. Sylter thatchers are crowd-pullers, often well-travelled and adventurous and can be very quick-witted. They are very fit and healthy and usually always have the best overview, not only of the village of Kampen. You can see the Finkes on or around the roof at www.finke-reetdach.de