Citation

Tobriner SO. Constr. Build. Mater. 2003; 17(8): 521-532.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/S0950-0618(03)00051-5

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The collapse of the nave and dome of the Cathedral of Noto, S. Nicolo, in a rainstorm in 1996 brought to light 18th century construction errors unique to this building. S. Nicolo is the most prominent church in the city of Noto, a rich Baroque center in southeastern Sicily completely reconstructed after an earthquake in 1693. During the course of its construction and reconstruction between 1696 and 1950, S. Nicolo was plagued by multiple earthquake failures and construction errors. This paper attempts to assemble the unwritten construction history of the church for the first time in English, and to address the question of how architects, engineers and builders responded to the problem of creating a seismically resistant building. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language: en