Exhibition page 8

OVERVIEW

ROOFS AND ROOF COVERING

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THE ROOFTOPS OF THE TOWN

A roof is often called the fifth facade of a house, and the roof design has a big impact on the overall appearance of a house.

In Elsinore, the buildings have many different types of roof structures. Roof pitches in the town centre should typically be between 40 and 50 degrees, preferably with the ridge in the middle of a building, such as with the classic gable roof, which hangs like a saddle over the load-bearing walls of a house.

HIPPED ROOF

If you want a roof to have a softer edge and a lower gable end, you can create a gentler slope towards the bottom of the roof. This is what is known as a hipped roof, and this method can be seen in numerous places around the town centre. Corner buildings in particular often have hipped roofs where the sides of the roof join.

Here, you can see a lovely example of how a hipped roof enhances a house.

SLOPING ROOF

On side buildings or smaller outbuildings, you can see examples of completely asymmetrical roofs that only have slopes on one side. This is often because a house has been built next to the boundary of the neighbouring plot.

MANSARD ROOF

The town also has lots of examples of the more unusual mansard roof, which is a multi-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper one, typically covered with tiles or slate. If the very top part of a mansard roof is almost completely flat, it is called a “Copenhagen roof”. The advantage of this type of roof is that it gives buildings a fuller look, plus the entire roof space can be utilised.

ROOF COVERINGS

There are lots of different types of roof coverings. Old Danish “vingetegl” (wing tile) is a classic roof covering that has been used in Denmark since the 16th century and can be found in abundance all around town. In the old town centre, red wing tiles are commonly used and create an authentic look that suits historical houses. It was originally inspired by a type of Dutch wing tile and is a traditional red matte tile that has a distinctive soft shape with a wing on one side and a curved edge on the other. A unique feature of this type of tiled roof with its wavy surface is that it changes appearance depending on what time of day and year the light falls on it.

RECYCLED TILES

A tile can last for over a century and is therefore one of the most durable roofing materials available. When you renovate the roof of an old house, old tiles are often reused and laid on a newly constructed frame. Mixing old and new tiles can be very noticeable, so recycled tiles are a very important element when restoring older properties. They can give an old house a natural and beautiful patina, and at the same time, it is a very sustainable method that protects the environment by not having to bake new tiles.

MONK AND NUN TILES

On very old buildings from the Middle Ages, such as Sct. Mariæ Church, you can see the rather unique monk and nun tiles. They are created using a completely different principle than the classic wing tile. A combination of two different tiles is used, where one (the nun – a slightly wider tile) is situated at the bottom with the arch pointing downwards, and the other (the monk – a slightly narrower tile) is situated at the top with the arch pointing upwards. There is even a so-called Elsinore model of this type of tile. This kind of roof looks very different from a roof with classic wing tiles, as monk and nun tiles create taller waves because the two different tiles are on top of one another.

COPPER AND SLATE

There are only a few buildings with copper roofs in Elsinore. Apart from Sct. Olai Church and a few other buildings with towers, spires, dormer windows, front gables and so on, there are no historical buildings with copper roofs in the town centre.

There are also buildings, such as Elsinore Town Hall, that do not have a tiled roof. Instead, it has a slate roof. Slate is a natural product which creates a beautiful matte grey surface.

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