Structural Restoration of Historic Buildings: General Guidelines

Planning the structural restoration of an historic building involves acquiring both objective and subjective data. The former can be obtained from mathematical models, laboratory and field tests and investigations, etc. The latter can be derived from direct observation of decay and damage, and from an informed interpretation of historical records, both literary and graphic. Thus, it is very difficult to establish precise and universal guidelines for such structural restorations. Although a universal code for the structural restoration of historical buildings is probably impossible to compose, some recommendations are desirable, indeed indispensable, in order to limit the scope for arbitrary decisions and to place all the relevant procedures in a rational scientific framework. These recommendations may be divided into three main types: damage evaluation, safety evaluation and general criteria.