Reading the stones. A methodological approach to the study of historic masonry | A Lecture from Professor Paolo Vitti

The lecture will focus on the methodology that can be used for analyzing and interpreting a historic masonry. Each building uniquely documents its construction process and all subsequent modifications. Any historic building is thus an "authentic record of the past" that can be used to understand how local materials were used to form masonries in a given place and period. The concept of "regola dell'arte" will be further explored as to show how a masonry conforms/differs to best practice. The proposed methodology is intended to offer tools for best practice in architectural preservation, but also to create models for sustainable architecture. The author will argue that graphic analysis of traditional construction and on-site survey are fundamental tools to achieve this goal.

Examples discussed will include the fortifications of Paestum, the Domus Tiberiana, the Colosseum, and the Armenian Church in Nicosia-Cyprus, the Almoravid qubba in Marrakesh.

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