Vernacular architecture and “historical seismography”: an experience research

Niglio, Olimpia and Ulivieri, Denise (2005) Vernacular architecture and “historical seismography”: an experience research. In: Structural analysis of historical constructions. Taylor & Francis, London, UK, pp. 203-212. ISBN 04-1536-379-9

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Abstract

The history of hearthquakes can be defined as a very ancient discipline, which roots are on the tales and on records of the most calamitous events whose evidence is not easy to be found because not written but handed down orally, and the history of seismology is a good example. The analysis of the historical archives and the carefull study of the projects concerning the territory and its structure, often reveals precious informations on events that involved the place, such as the most dangerous, i.e earthquakes, but little technical information about recovery or rebuilding is given in written documentation from the direct literature of the urban context and of the individual building is possible to deduce techiques and ways of the past used to inntervene to reply to the seismic needs of the build and from which the historic seismology originates from. The study of the history of earthquakes has become a systematic instruments to determine the areas where they can happen with a likely periodicity from the past century, and relates especially on historic seismology which has its historic reference store, even if it bases itself on oral sources. Our study, instead, based exclusively upon the analysis and the direct study of the architecture, aims to determinate the needs and the technical devices, peculiar to the art of building, but strictly connect to the local building culture of our territorial reference or research. The rich store of informations has allowed us to study different costructive typology, often determined by needs connected not only to the building tradition but also to the local seismic culture. In the areas exposed at high seismic risk, the regularity of the event can create a progressive rooting of the tecniques and behaviours leading to a clear protective view. When the system becomes part of the experience of the comunity, it stays in the people’s memory. The resident population are titular of their own seismic culture that generates non codified and non written rules but readable in the constructive characteristics of the buildings, in the general structure given by the territory. Every building bears witness to its own history and furnishes an enormous quantitaty of informations: the damage suffered, the repair work, intervention of prevention. A "global" local research and at the same time a systematic research of the frequencies of the constructive elements are developed. From this will of putting the basis for a systematic study of the “historical seismography” that promotes a technical normative of reference that is neither generic nor inducing inter-ventions little respectful of a context that only asks to be left in alone.

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