The Gothic arcade of Santa Maria Incoronata in Naples: equilibrium of Gothic arches

摘要

The paper is an application of the structural theory for masonries to a historic building through a static analysis of the shape and stability of the arches of the Incoronata Church in Naples. The previous history of the interventions has been thoroughly investigated by checking the consistency of decisions made over time by engineers and architects who, despite not having modern tools of calculation, designed only by using geometric rules and professional experience. So, a stability analysis is centred on the Gothic Arcade, which has the singularity of a non-symmetrical front and has suffered restoration interventions whose results can be debatable. The analysis conducted is both analytical and graphical, by using the well-known concept of the line of thrust. The obtained equilibrium solution explains the suitability of the arches and the rationality of the intervention in the context of the history of constructions. Although limited to one building, the approach could be applied more generally, with the aim to afford a contribution to the structural knowledge of architectural heritage.