Damage assessment of Monte di Pietà in Naples, Italy: preliminary analyses and detailed surveys

The paper focuses on an interdisciplinary research project concerning the preservation of the monumental building of Monte di Pieta in Naples (Italy), with particular reference to the monumental facade. During time the building has been object of complex series of restoration interventions both on floor slabs due to change of use destinations and on the structural walls that were affected by humidity and crack patterns strikingly accentuated as a consequence of the earthquake in 1980. The great artistic value of the building, which is located in the historical city centre of Naples, has induced to plan a retrofitting program, whose preliminary phase has been a deepen investigation for the monument identification and evaluation of the state of conservation. To this purpose an extensive in situ survey has been carried out, what led to acquire as much knowledge as possible concerning the geometrical and mechanical features of the entire structure and particularly of the entrance facade, with great details on materials, stone layers, thicknesses and mutual restraints between structural parts. This has been also the basis for setting up a numerical model of the facade, allowing the structural analysis for evidencing weakness and problematic aspects. In situ analyses and surveys exploited 3D laser scanner techniques, digital orthophotogrammetry, probing radar, stress measures