The yellow Skagen houses
The very recognisable yellow colour found on the houses in Skagen and the red roof tiles is something many people associate with the town at the top of Denmark
But how did the tradition of this yellow colour come about?
The dominant colours of what you might call a traditional Skagen house are yellow and red. The facades of the houses are yellow-washed and the roofs are brick-red with differences that are whitewashed.
Every year around Whitsun, there was a tradition of whitewashing houses with a mixture of dried ochre and lime. One year, some houses in Skagen were accidentally whitewashed with a different type of ochre than usual. This time it was a French gold ochre, which creates a much deeper yellow colour. Many believe that this mistake is the reason why Skagen Yellow looks the way it does today.
The white differences, which can be seen on the red tiles, were intended, among other things, to serve as identification marks for ships. The more superstitious even believed that the white differences could keep evil spirits and witches away. These whitewashed differences are also often called lace.
