Reinforced Concrete in Anastylosis: The Establishment of a New Technique

The new technique of reinforced concrete had revolutionized during the 20th century the entire practice of construction. The new approach had consequences also on the restoration of monuments, especially from the Thirties when reinforced concrete had a widespread diffusion after the approval at the Conference of Athens. The new technique could confer to historic buildings new and greater performances compared to traditional materials like masonry and timber. The paper wants to focus in particular on archaeological heritage, to identify what have been the reasons of the achievement of reinforced concrete for restoration. The possibilities offered by the new technique to satisfy the specific requirements of restoration in archaeological area will be considered, reporting to its technical and structural properties in the context of archaeological remains that had lost structural completeness. Also to the goals of the restorations for the image of the ancient ruins will be considered. To develop this issue the work will refer to the restorations carried out between the end of World War I and the Fifties in some important archaeological areas in Italy and in Greece by Italian archaeological missions, both with references to historical sources and to observation of constructions. These intervention practices transformed the archaeological heritage; the transformations occurred propose nowadays different issues for preservation, related to the actual consistency of the ruins. The ancient remains with the strengthening interventions have to be considered nowadays as mixed structures. Their structural behaviour is not deep known. Deepen the knowledge of them is the first step to define maintenance programs and prevent seismic risk.