From the small elements to the urban scale: an investigation where petrophysical study of materials and architectural shape analysis try to read a masterplan in the Hadrian’s Villa, Tivoli (Rome, Italy)

Inside the Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli, it is possible to read multiple networks aimed to create systems for moving people and supplies, to create spectacular spaces, to give welfare and security to the court and to the people living in this urban scale monument. The reading of these networks sometimes is not easy, but the main idea in this project is to start from the small evidences in the single buildings, find rules and solutions to combine them into a global digital survey based on a 3D digital model and then start using this model for the formulation of some hypothesis. The evidences will come from the analysis of the materials (stones, mortars, concretes, bricks) and from the architectonic shapes study. Combining these two parallel paths into the rich digital survey of the area gathered by the “Dipartimento di Architettura” since 2004 it becomes possible to create a multi-level environment aimed to be shared by scholars from different branches to start their analysis. Through a petrophysical study of materials, the macroscopic analyses data of structure wall textures, all linked to the 3D digital documentation based on the use of laser scanner technologies, it’s possible to reconstruct the construction stages of the ancient baths. The petrographic, mineralogical and chemical characterization of the wall and floor mortars and concretes and their physical properties (total and open porosity, real and apparent density, mechanical strength, aggregate granulometry, binder/aggregate ratio, etc.) allowed to classify the function and the compositional variations of the same within the structure of the thermae. In parallel to this the study of the architectural shapes, starting from the accurate digital survey, allowed to identify geometric constructions, with variable and constants in the architectural choices, tracing some interesting paths in the deep knowledge of this monument