The Traveling Journeymen in Sibiu

August 2025

Each year during the month of August, the courtyard of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sibiu, a structure dating back to the 1300's, is taken over by a band of craftspeople, both men and women, representing various guilds. They set up work stations and demonstrate their skills to the gathering crowds that are attracted as much by the process as by the unusual dress, easily recognized by the eight button vests, wide brimmed or derby hats, and bellbottom pants.

The tradition of the traveling journeymen is hundreds of years old, dating back to the Middle Ages when, upon completion of their apprenticeship, they would embark on a three-year journey that would take them from town to town, practicing their craft in exchange for food and lodging.

At the end of that period, they would be considered Masters of their craft, and would settle and set up a shop and perhaps start a family.

The journeymen and the guild system were familiar fixtures in Sibiu's history, as several towers still in existence on the perimeter of the old city's defensive wall testify: each guild was responsible for defending a portion of the wall in case of enemy attack.

The Tanners' Tower

The journeymen coming to Sibiu are mostly from Germany and Austria, with a few from France as well, and all the ones I encountered were fluent in English. Oftentimes, aside from demonstrating their skills in front of the crowds, they will also do restoration work on old historical buildings using traditional methods and materials.

In an age when most young people are dependent on technology and could not envision life apart from it, it is admirable to see these craftsmen who relinquish comfort, packing a change of clothes and a few tools in a small bundle, and walk or hitchhike from place to place on a quest to improve their skills and broaden their knowledge and understanding of traditions they try to keep alive.

This is the where the journeymen lodge while in Sibiu

The post outside the hostel where visiting craftsmen are encouraged to leave their "signature". The gargoyle on top was carved by one such craftsman.

The trades most represented this year were blacksmithing, stonemasonry, and carpentry, but also present were a couple of ladies trained as restoration painters and a bookbinder. In talking to the painters I learned that they used natural pigments and egg yolk as a binder in a technique employed for hundreds of years in the painting of church frescoes.

These two ladies were demonstrating fresco painting. The one on the left was grinding pigment with a small mortar and pestle.

A bookbinder at work

A stonemason carving a replacement element for the Church facade

And another carving the crest of Sibiu, County Seat to seven cities.

A carpenter making a corbel that will hold the Crest

There is no discrimination among the journeymen and this young lady who was trained as a carpenter is applying her skill while carving a finial.

Fresh baked bread, anyone?

And yes, the bakers have a guild of their own!

Some small items produced by the craftspeople are available for purchase, providing money for meals.

And those inclined to donate for the cause, can do so in the spherical stone donation box.

While to some this "Auf der Walz" as the traveling journeyman affair is called, seems far removed from today's reality, the people taking that path do so very seriously. They are honest, hard workers, and passionate about improving their skills while also being enriched by the human experience in their travel encounters. What does the future holds for this age-old tradition? I could not tell, but the craftsmen I talked to were enthusiastic, and upon completion of their three year adventure, had plans to start a shop and take in apprentices who would hopefully continue in it.

Now that one can travel freely inside the European Union, you might encounter the journeymen in unexpected places; if while driving you see them on the side of the road with their thumbs out, give them a lift. You'll be blessed while blessing them, and who knows, it might turn out to be a Divine appointment with the right people to fix that leaning fence or gate that isn't working right!

Looks like it's going to storm!