Many customers and non-thatch owners ask the question "is it the case that each thatcher has his own unique signature?"
My response is that thatching is not an exact science and is a craft. There is a degree of individual autonomy and expression that a thatcher can put on each roof he works on and therefore yes his work is unique to him but not a conscious thing. This means that thatchers can recognise each other's work by the style of thatching. The main clues are in the ridge designs and finishes, the treatment of thatch around windows and other features. This is not a deliberate action that the thatcher takes but is just the way he has become accustomed to thatching.
Clearly this recognition of other thatchers work is a regional thing and I would find it impossible to distinguish thatchers work in another part of the country - although if I saw a thatcher's finished work in say Somerset or Kent and I knew who the thatcher was, I am sure I could recognise his work again.
I suppose a good comparison would be handwriting - where a teacher would recognise the handwriting of most of their pupils but would not know the handwriting of pupils in another class.
