Thorp's Record Holding Legacy

As a result of the Thorp Archive’s efforts to preserve and share the remarkable history of the company and its pivotal role in the professionalisation of architectural modelmaking in Britain, Thorp modelmakers has been officially recognised as the oldest firm of architectural modelmakers in the world in the 2026 edition of Guinness World Records. Founded by John Thorp as the London Drawing and Tracing Office in 1883, the company still trades today under the ownership of Atom, having recently celebrated its 140th anniversary.

Since Arts University Bournemouth took ownership of the company’s historic archive in 2019, the importance of Thorp’s heritage has been much more widely shared, including through books such as A History of Architectural Modelmaking in Britain and Model Britain, both written by the archive’s lead researcher Dr David Lund, and in exhibitions, magazines, podcasts, on social media, and at the annual New Blades modelmaking show in London. The aim of this work is to share Thorp’s cultural heritage among modelmakers, architects, architectural historians, and the general public.

The recognition of the company’s history by Guinness World Records is a moment of celebration not just for Thorp Modelmakers and the Thorp Archive, but also for the entire modelmaking industry. Any architectural modelmaker working today is following in the template that John Thorp established, however few people are even aware that modelmaking is an actual profession. The public recognition of Thorp’s legacy in the 2026 edition of Guinness World Records should help to change this and hopefully inspire the next generation of modelmakers.

You can find out more about Thorp’s current work by visiting their website: www.thorpmodelmakers.co.uk