400 years of fireplaces A quick guide to the history of fireplace design


by many factors. The gradual change from wood burning to coal was a major influence, as was increased fuel efficiency and the desire to get more heat into the room. However, necessity and efficiency was matched by developments in architectural style and the way in which the chimneypiece was used as a statement of fashion and status.


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Prior to the advent of central heating the fireplace was the sole method of heating in British houses and it was the centrepiece of most rooms, even lesser rooms and bedrooms. However, it was more than just a source of heat: it was frequently an architectural showpiece, an expression of status and not infrequently a fashion accessory. Fireplaces were sometimes integrated as part of the wider design of a room but were commonly chosen from catalogues by proud homeowners or speculative builders.


The chronology of fireplaces is complex. Change in designs was rapid and driven by the move from burning wood to coal, by scientific advancement, by increasing industrialised manufacturing, but more than anything by architectural taste. Fireplaces, perhaps more than any other architectural feature, were an expression of fashion.


17TH CENTURY In the 17th century fires burned in a simple rectangular recess in the wall under a timber beam, a stone lintel or an arch. The fire burned on firedogs whereby two andirons (or endirons) lifted the ends of the burning logs off the stone hearth. The masonry of the rear wall was protected by a cast-iron fireback which was often decorated with heraldic motifs. Only in the more significant houses was the fireplace surrounded by a stone, oak or plaster chimneypiece to give it architectural status. Overmantels often extended from above the fire recess to the ceiling and were often heavily enriched incorporating a coat of arms or debased classical motifs. Eared


74 Listed Heritage Magazine September/October 2018


surrounds in which the top stone extended beyond the vertical upright jamb stones were a common architectural motif towards the end of the century.


GEORGIAN AND REGENCY It was in the 18th century that coal gradually took the place of wood as the primary fuel source. Coal burned hotter and for longer so fireplaces became smaller. Firedogs were adapted to support coal-burning firebaskets which became the forerunner to the Georgian dog-grate. The dog-grate was a free standing firebasket which lifted the coal fire above the hearth on legs and was permanently attached


he design of fireplaces developed rapidly over the last four hundred years and was influenced


In this simple 17th- century farmhouse fireplace the only concession to decoration is the slight camber of the beam which has been chamfered by the carpenter with cyma- moulded end stops


In grander houses in the 17th century fireplaces had oak, plaster or stone surrounds and overmantels


This fireplace has an eared marble surround and an overmantel with swags which is designed as part


of an Georgian paneled room


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