ABSTRACT

During the ‘30s and the ‘40s of the 20^th century, several restorations of monuments and archeological sites within Rome and its regional area were performed by introducing materials and technologies extraneous to the building tradition, i.e. reinforced concrete, cement mixtures and metallic reinforcements as well. In the different applications -e.g. injections, sealing of lesions and grouting of joints with concrete and sand mortar, seams with iron rods, concrete beams, slabs and reinforcements, iron chains and metallic reinforcements of wooden beams -it is evident the trend to disguise the new intervention within the historic structures, then contradicting the principle of ‘distinctness’ that was the cornerstone of the 'scientific' theory (sealed by the charts of the ‘30s), and the control lack of compatibility of the new techniques with the historic masonry. After almost one century, while being always open the debate on the relationship between consolidation and conservation, this paper aims to introduce considerations with reference to the outcomes of some twentieth-century restorations that were performed within Rome and its regional area (Lazio). Such interventions are the result of an ‘orthodox’ attitude to the current theories; they often result to be antithetical to the same guidelines of their times, as well as questionable in terms of material authenticity, awareness of the historical phases and real structural effectiveness.

Parole chiave/Key-words: ‘Traditional/innovative’ materials, Concrete reinforcement, Compatibility, Authenticity.