About Chimni

Most architectural history is written for historians and academics. The Chimni Wiki is an attempt to rewrite architectural history for the homeowner and combine it with the best property and building maintenance information to make a living compendium of housing information.

Let's take an example. We not only care about the classical history of the Corinthian column, but also about the very human story of the builders who put it on the house in Clapham, but also how the owner can restore and maintain it as part of a living 21C home.

The humble Acanthus leaf is the primary decorative motif on the Corinthian capitals atop the Parthenon. The same Acanthus leaf may decorate a pilaster column next to the front door of Victorian terrace house in Clapham. They are linked, and both tremendously interesting. However, an architectural historian will write about the first and barely give a nod to the second. At Chimni its the other way round - we start with the house and work back.

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  Acanthus Leaves On A Victorian Terrace House

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  Acanthus Leaves On William Morris Wallpaper

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  Acanthus Leaf Illustrations

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Whatever type of home you live in, from 1930s semi to Georgian terrace, we want you to understand how your home came to be designed the way it is, what the influences were, who lived there in the past, while celebrating it as your family home and helping you maintain and improve it. A Chimni wiki page should answer your immediate questions, while tempting you to dig a little further. Sometimes this may be onto another Chimni page, but other times this may be onto one of the wonderful other sources we have found on the web or books and authors that have entranced us.

There will be lots of other sources that go into any particular subject in a lot more detail, and where possible, we have given links to them and recommended the ones that the Chimni team believe to be good. We have tried to write about building history in a way that is accessible to the average householder, while giving pointers to those those who want to delve further. The Chimni Wiki is an affectionate guide to the houses and homes of the UK.