Investigation and conservation of artificial stone facades of the early XX century: A case study

The investigation and conservation of artificial stone facades, realized between the late XIX and the earlyXX century, have recently gained increasing attention, due to different reasons: on the one hand, theinterest in documenting the architectural and technical characteristics of a relevant phase in the evolutionof the building technology, whose historical and cultural values are commonly recognized; and, onthe other hand, the need to deal thoroughly with the occurring alterations and pathologies.Particularly, the diagnostic process, although based on well established procedures and techniques fornatural stone, should be carefully planned for artificial stone components, which show specific features,in terms of mixtures, installation and connection methods, interaction mechanisms with reinforcementand support materials. As a result, the definition of a correlated system of onsite tests and laboratoryanalyses is paramount, in order to come to a comprehensive qualification of materials, construction techniquesand state of conservation, also by saving time and money.Specifically, the paper is going to describe a general investigation methodology for artificial stonefacades, realized between the XIX and XX centuries, in terms of selection and correlation criteria of diagnostictechniques. The methodology has been applied to a case study, the social housing complex ‘‘Ducadegli Abruzzi’’ in Bari, South Italy, that is particularly representative for construction history, extent andvariety of ornamental elements, environmental factors and utilization conditions. The results from thecharacterization of mixtures, construction techniques and decay patterns have allowed the definitionof compatible and suitable conservation measures.