Switzerland · Decorative arts; Plaster craft; Romansh heritage
Sgraffito Engadinese — Decorazione Murale
The sgraffito house decoration tradition of the Engadin valley — the technique of applying two or more layers of differently colored lime plaster and incising a design through the upper layer to reveal the lower, producing the characteristic white-on-dark geometric and figurative patterns that cover the facades of the historic Engadin farmhouses (Chesas) and make the Engadin valley villages (Guarda, Ardez, Zuoz — all UNESCO monument villages) visually unique in Switzerland. The Sgraffitomacher reads the correct incision window — the narrow time period after the upper plaster layer is applied but before it has hardened beyond workability — through a fingernail press assessment.
Risk level: Vulnerable · Engadin sgraffito is UNESCO ICH Switzerland (2018) — on the Swiss National Inventory and under consideration for the UNESCO Representative List
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