Rural architecture
Straw roofs are undoubtedly one of the most beautiful forms of rural architecture. Until the middle of the 20th century, it was customary to cover farm buildings such as barns, stables and threshing floors with straw. Basically, this was a solution born of necessity: as there was no money for expensive roofing, the farmers simply used what was available in abundance through the cultivation of grain: straw. With painstaking manual labour, they created an air-permeable and at the same time waterproof roof that provided ideal conditions for housing the harvest and the animals.
Utilisation of existing raw materials
They usually used local autumn rye for this purpose. Well ripened and dried, the long-stemmed stalks were tied into "Schab" (arm-thick bundles of straw) and laid in strips on the steep roof. This was a skill that required great ability and was passed on to the younger generation simply by watching and helping.
The beginning of the end
As the cultivation of cereals dwindled, so did the number of thatched buildings in recent decades. So drastically, in fact, that today there are only four left in the whole of Vöran: at Spitzegger, Sunnegger, Tötnmoar and Gfrar in Aschl. But apart from the lack of raw material, there are other reasons for the extinction of the historic thatched roofs.
Great effort for maintenance
In addition to the time-consuming maintenance, which necessitates an annual, cost-intensive partial renewal of the thatched roof, there is the fact that almost no one today knows the craft of thatching. The considerable fire hazard of the material also results in high insurance costs. And even various subsidies that have flowed in the past and the efforts of committed owners and the Heimatpflegeverband (local heritage association), which has been working to preserve this valuable cultural asset since the 1960s, have not been able to stop the increasing dwindling of thatched roofs.
Between tradition and modernity
In addition to the aspect of preserving the local heritage, the situation of the farmers or owners of the thatched roofs must be taken into account. The daily work of local farmers is strenuous and long. With their daily work, they already make an important contribution to the preservation of the cultural landscape. So it is only understandable that a dilapidated thatched roof that is no longer fit for purpose is exchanged for a modern, "lower-maintenance" roofing. In addition, maintaining a thatched roof is often simply financially not viable for many or has to make way for other investments on the farm.
A forward-looking path still needs to be found
On the other hand, there is the will and the understandable concern to preserve such a beautiful cultural asset as the thatched roofs of
Vöran for posterity. This is a challenge with many facets that can only be mastered by involving everyone - farmers, citizens, politicians and tourists.