“Stratigrafia dell’architettura tra tradizione e innovazione. Esempi e riflessioni”

Thinking about both the chances and the risks for architectural preservation in digital times, the authors try to verify how one can address the first ones and reduce the latter regarding tradition and innovation as complementary rather than as alternative approaches. Likewise in any field of contemporary life, for several decades technical development has been bringing a wider and deeper scope of knowledge in restoration, especially in terms of non-destructive testing (ndt) and virtual simulation, thus improving preservation. On the other hand, the faster and cheaper chances of enjoying a piece of work or a place through virtual reality are slowly but surely moving attention away from the matter, that is the physical testimony of any value/meaning preservation should be focussed on. Architectural stratigraphy is an interesting test-bed for checking, and possibly maintaning the sensitive balance between tangible and virtual in our relationship to the built Heritage. Stratgraphy is a traditional, well rooted field of study, at the same time a flexible and innovation-oriented instrument. The paper deals with the study of a stratified palimpsest where stratigraphy has been first traditionally performed and then improved by a realistic virtual model through Building Information Modeling (BIM), a digital copy which has been rigorousely developed with an high level of objective data allowing 3D exploration.