FERRO/VIE.

LA “SECONDA” ETÀ DEL FERRO IN ALTO ADIGE

Klaus Ausserhofer1

1 Fondazione Architettura Alto Adige, Bolzano, klausausserhofer@hotmail.de

ABSTRACT

South Tyrol has no significant deposits of metals. Therefore it was difficult to obtain, expensive and little used in local building traditions: wrought iron railings and nails, copper roofing of the domes and bell towers.

The construction of the railway connections with Verona in 1859 and Innsbruck in 1867 and finally with Villach in 1871 radically changed the method of construction. Not only it favored the import of new architectural styles tied to historicism from major cities of Central Europe, but also introduced new construction materials of industrial production, as prefabricated concrete elements and new metals:

1. Iron: used for railway tracks, bolts, large reservoirs of water along railway lines, riveted truss bridges and cables for the first suspension bridges.

2. Cast iron: used for columns and pillars, rich in detail as an expression of the stylistic tendencies of historicism, sinks, fountains, plaques and signs.

3. Galvanized sheet metal: used in the form of simple plates or strips for covering roofs of railway stations, and in the form of shingles with relief decorations for mansard roofs.

The article provides an overview of the metals introduced in South Tyrol following the opening of the railway connections 150 years ago and used initially for railway installations and buildings and then to the emerging hotel architecture, illustrating case studies and its approach to restoration.

Parole chiave/Key-words:

South Tyrol, railways, suspension bridge, cast iron, galvanized sheet