
HISTORIC MASONRY STRUCTURES

HISTORIC MASONRY STRUCTURES


General Description
Ancient structures were built following design rules that are not available anymore. The design was based on geometry rather than on mechanics, focusing on the equilibrium among the parts of the building rather than on the strength of the materials. The change in perspective of design rules from antiquity to current regulations is one of the reasons for the difficulty in providing an adequate safety estimate of historic buildings and the main reason for improper, unnecessary and in some cases harmful interventions.
The International Summer School on Historic Masonry Structures HIMASS aims at covering this gap and, recovering the knowledge of ancient masonry structures, providing a fundamental historical and theoretical framework to understand the structural behavior of masonry structures.
Since the first edition in 2018, HIMASS has run for six editions, training about 130 students from more than 20 countries in Europe and beyond. This remarkable international participation demonstrates the school’s very effective European relevance in heritage preservation.
HIMASS offers a beautiful learning experience that combines rigorous academic studies with hands-on fieldwork. The participants are directly involved with real case studies in order to face at real problems in heritage preservation. The program content is designed to cover the various aspects related to construction history, digital surveying, structural analysis and preservation. Working on real structures helps in fostering the link between the different disciplines and sharing a common alphabet in which scientific approach and technological innovation are guided and contaminated by history and humanistic thought.
HIMASS also provides an environment for international collaboration and sharing of knowledge. The program encourages teamwork which not only helps in developing technical skills but also in building strong relationships, towards the creation of an international community interested in the fundamental knowledge of the behavior of historic masonry structures with the awareness that our heritage should be respected, safely preserved and handed down to future generations.
Bank Details
DATI BANCARI
Intesa Sanpaolo
Frosinone via Marittima 417 ABI 03069 CAB 14801
IT51P0306909606100000189265
BIC: BCITITMM
Contact
+39 333 525 1815
Aims and Objective
The summer school is a two-week immersion in the world of the past, in historical masonry construction. Teachers and students are involved in an intense activity of study, analysis and discussion. HIMASS aims to raise the level of understanding of historic buildings in order to respond appropriately to the challenge related to the preservation of cultural heritage through sustainable and scientifically based practices.
Key objectives include:
Encouraging interdisciplinary learning: HIMASS combines knowledge in architecture, engineering, restoration, construction history, and digital surveying in order to promote collaborative methods in heritage conservation.
Integrating theoretical frameworks with practical application: Participants apply theoretical concepts to real-world problems and challenges through the examination of actual case studies, thereby bridging academic learning with experiential practice.
International collaboration: The program offers a unique opportunity for students, academics, and practitioners with diverse backgrounds—both cultural and vocational—to exchange ideas, disseminate good practices, and establish long-term professional networks.
Preparing Future Professionals: The course curriculum of HIMASS guarantees that participants gain advanced competencies in design principles and structural assessment of historical masonry structures, construction methods, and preservation.
Contributing to heritage sustainability: HIMASS focuses on scientifically sound solutions for the sustainable preservation of historic structures and the protection of cultural heritage for future generations.
HIMASS is dedicated to forming an international network of professionals and aims at improving the research and practice in the framework of historic masonry building preservation.
Historical and technical research undertaken for the project
The Summer school is the result of the research activities in the different fields of construction history of 'structural analysis and seismic behavior of monuments, as evidenced by the scientific production of the three proponents.
The study and research activities carried out in the Summer School related to the case studies allowed the publication of several scientific papers with the participation of the students and researchers involved, some of which are attached to this application.
Main cultural, social, environmental, and educational outcomes
This project aims to impact on conservation policy and practice. In the course of the 20th century, the tradition of masonry building disappeared completely. Masonry construction is no longer taught in universities; master builders, stonemasons and masons have completely disappeared in many countries.
Building knowledge of masonry, that ‘intangible heritage’, is dying out. The question is: “is it possible to maintain or restore something without understanding its construction and its functioning?”
The answer is: NO. But that is what is happening right now: engineers, architects, builders, are intervening on masonry heritage with an almost complete ignorance of its history and constructive nature. The consequences are plain to see: excessive and unnecessary interventions, application of incompatible materials and techniques, ‘resolution’ of non-existent problems. Buildings, which for centuries or millennia have survived the passage of time, wars, earthquakes and floods, now face an ‘invisible enemy’: prejudice.
Engineers consider masonry-built construction to be poorly constructed, and try to remedy this. These ‘saving’ interventions are turning our cathedrals and monuments into a sort of ‘Frankenstein's monster’, a jumble of stones tied together with steel or carbon fibre rods, covered with reinforced concrete or with carbon fibre mesh glued to the stone with synthetic resins. A huge waste of money; an irreparable damage to the monument.
The main result achieved in the summer school is the recovery of the knowledge about the construction and functioning of these structures. What can be done in two weeks? Expose the problem, analyse it and discuss it with reference to real case studies.
The course does not aim to impart knowledge that would take years to acquire; it aims to awaken interest and raise doubts about the current approach, which is ignorant of tradition, invasive, unsustainable. The only way to combat prejudice is by first provoking doubt and then exposing the foundations of knowledge.
Innovative Aspects
The most innovative aspect of the summer school is the recovery of the tradition of knowledge accumulated over centuries, over millennia, about historic masonry, this knowledge that appears solidified, sculpted in stone in constructions that have survived for centuries or millennia.
The tradition of masonry construction collapsed at the beginning of the 20th century with the advent of so-called modern architecture and the systematic use of modern materials, steel and reinforced concrete. The recognition that the approach derived from these materials is not applicable to masonry is the most innovative aspect of this course. Most of the structural engineering profession educated within the steel and reinforced concrete frame of mind, not only lack the knowledge necessary to understand these marvelous masonry constructions, but this mental framework prevents them from accepting what is right in front of their eyes: the astonishing stability of these constructions which survived over centuries or millennia.
Environmental Sustainability
Historic buildings are an emblematic example of sustainable techniques and materials with low environmental impact, excellent resilience and adaptability. Their mechanical functioning as structures that are resistant by form rather than by material strength has made it possible to reduce the thickness of structural elements and thus the amount of material used.
Their preservation allows our heritage to be handed down to future generations while reducing the emissions that the demolition and reconstruction of new structures would entail. In addition, a deep understanding of the behavior of ancient structures can be a stimulus for the design of new form-resilient structures, which are now accessible again thanks to digital printing and robotics, the recovery of ancient building technologies in a contemporary context, and the use of traditional materials that are more sustainable and resilient.
Knowledge Gained and Outreach of the Educational Activities
Those who acquire a thorough knowledge of the arch will never get it from books alone, and we cannot pretend to give it them. We can only show the alphabet, with the aid of which they may spell out their learning from actual structures and the practical experience that is gained from real work. (The Statics of Bridges, 1861)
Throughout the course there are continuous discussions on how to analyse these complicated constructions. More than 120 students have passed through the school over the last six years. What impact this may have cannot be known. The greatest result and knowledge gained is to sow doubt, to draw attention to a phenomenon that, being in plain sight, apparently nobody wants to see (like the Emperor's suit in Andersen's fairy tale): knowledge of these constructions has been lost, and, because of this ignorance, masonry buildings are addressed with the wrong tools.
Target Participants
The school is designed for a small audience (20-25) of students plus possibly 4-6 senior auditors. The target audience is PhD students in the field of Structural Engineering , History of Construction, Preservation of cultural heritage, but master's students specialized in architecture or engineering with a focus on historic structures or professionals working in the field of restoration are also encouraged to participate.
The participation of youth, community, non-traditional audiences or people with disabilities is also encouraged. Groups in the planned learning activities are formed considering the interaction between different competencies and different skills, enabling the full participation without marginalization or limitation of any kind.
Contribution to Intercultural Dialogue and to the Protection of Cultural Diversity
In this respect, the Summer School on Historic Masonry Structures has a manyfold content:
Economic: we provide support and different economic treatment for individuals coming from less developed countries;
Participatory: we are committed to bringing diverse ethnic groups and genders to the School;
Heritage: the diversity of cultural traditions that are studied and monuments that are considered as case studies;
Multicultural: the variety of ethnic groups and their traditions that are made valuable and visible.
Transferability of the Initiative to Other Contexts
From the point of view of the regional location, this initiative has the potential to be transferred to other contexts as the experiences in Italy and Spain demonstrate and the strong commitment of partners from other countries in the Mediterranean area effectively would allow.
In the sense of the transferability of skills and knowledge from the field of Preservation and Structural Analysis of Masonry to different contexts, we believe that there is a strong content both of hard and soft skills that can be usefully transferred, for example to the design, understanding and implementation of new sustainable structures.
We also believe that the experience of this Summer School is an important and pivotal step into the creation of an advanced course of study on Masonry assessment and preservation, such as a Master or a Specialization Course, both for Architects and Engineers.