Author(s)

G. Croci, P. Degni, G. Carluccio, S. Meluzzi & A. Viskovic

Abstract

The Church of "St. Carlo alle Quattro Fontane", designed by Francesco Borromini, is a masterpiece of the Italian Baroque. The appearance of deformations and cracks in the vault of the crypt called for the insertion of props. Historical research was carried out to ascertain the original shape and compare it with the deformations visible today. Investigations revealed that the vault was built in good quality pozzolanic concrete mixed with irregular tuff stone blocks. Structural analyses were carried out using finite element models, taking into account the non-linear behaviour of the vault's material. The results show how the peculiar shape of the vault reduces the safety margins with partializations of sections;

Keywords