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Modern Age Fortifications of the Western Mediterranean Coast. Se distribuye bajo una licencia de Creative Commons Reconocimiento-NoComercial-SinObraDerivada 4.0 Internacional. Basada en una obra en http://ocs.editorial.upv.es/index.php/FORTMED V Defensive Architecture of the Mediterranean. XV to XVIII centuries / Vol II / Rodríguez-Navarro (Ed.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Modern Age Fortifications of the Western Mediterranean coast. October 15th, 16th and 17th 2015, at the Ciudad Politécnica de la Innovación, of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV). The conference’s main objective is the exchange of knowledge and sharing for the better understanding, assessment, management and exploitation of culture and heritage that developed on the Mediterranean coast in the modern age, taking into account the wide distribution of these results. The Conference has an interdisciplinary aim where architects, engineers, archaeologists, historians, geographers, cartographers, heritage managers, tourism experts, experts in restoration-conservation and promotion of heritage will participate. The idea is to provide a more inclusive, more real and more up to date views, leading us to the point where we could find the investigations of this matter, in the twenty-first century. The theme is centered on the fortifications of the western Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, Malta, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco) in the fifteenth to eighteenth centuries, although it does not exclude other Mediterranean countries and other fortifications from this era.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Modern Age Fortifications of the Western Mediterranean coast. October 15th, 16th and 17th 2015, at the Ciudad Politécnica de la Innovación, of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV). The conference’s main objective is the exchange of knowledge and sharing for the better understanding, assessment, management and exploitation of culture and heritage that developed on the Mediterranean coast in the modern age, taking into account the wide distribution of these results. The Conference has an interdisciplinary aim where architects, engineers, archaeologists, historians, geographers, cartographers, heritage managers, tourism experts, experts in restoration-conservation and promotion of heritage will participate. The idea is to provide a more inclusive, more real and more up to date views, leading us to the point where we could find the investigations of this matter, in the twenty-first century. The theme is centered on the fortifications of the western Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, Malta, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco) in the fifteenth to eighteenth centuries, although it does not exclude other Mediterranean countries and other fortifications from this era.
Proceedings of the Fortmed 2016. Volume 3 FORTMED 2016 is the International Conference on Modern Age Fortifications of the Mediterranean coast. This was the second edition following the first opening in Valencia in October 2015. The conference took place on November 10th, 11th and 12th 2016, at the Dipartimento di Architettura (DiDA) of the Florence University (UNIFI). The conference’s main objective is the exchange of knowledge and sharing for the better understanding, assessment, management and exploitation of culture and heritage that developed on the Mediterranean coast in the modern age, taking into account the wide distribution of these results. The Conference has an interdisciplinary aim where architects, engineers, archaeologists, historians, geographers, geologists, cartographers, heritage managers, tourism experts, experts in restoration-conservation and promotion of heritage will participate. The idea is to provide a more inclusive, more real and more up to date views, leading us to the point where we could find the investigations of this matter, in the twenty-first century. The theme is centered on the fortifications of the western Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, Malta, Grece, Albania, Turkey, Cyprus, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, etc...) in the fifteenth to eighteenth centuries, although it does not exclude other countries and other fortifications from this era.
The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, 2017
The Islamic Nasrid kingdom of Granada occupied the mountainous areas of the southeastern area of the Iberian Peninsula. There, a natural border was established between the Nasrid kingdom and the Christian kingdom of Castile from 1232 to 1492. To control this frontier and establish visual communication between it and the Nasrid center at the Alhambra citadel, an extensive network of watchtowers and defensive towers was constructed. Studies have been done of individual towers, but no comparative study has been undertaken of all of them. Graphic, homogenous, and exhaustively planimetric documentation would bring together existing information on the majority of them and enable comparative analysis. For this reason, this work conducts systematic architectural surveys of all these military structures, using photogrammetry. In addition to studying the construction typology and techniques, the structural capacity of these towers has been analyzed. It examines how they have been affected by human and natural destructive forces, especially earthquakes, which are common in eastern Andalusia. Although all the historical military architecture is protected by the Spanish and Andalusian Heritage laws, many of these medieval towers and their cultural landscapes are in severe risk. The towers are being studied as individual specimens (emphasizing their differences) and as a unit in a typological group (looking for similarities and unifying characteristics). New technologies for Information and Communication are being used in order to disseminate the results among specialists and to make them available to the general public. Guidelines for restoration projects are also being formulated from the cases analyzed.
Famagusta, Cyprus was at the center of Eastern Mediterranean trade between the 13th to 15th centuries. Europe wanted goods being delivered from the Levant - cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg as well as commodities such as wheat and cotton. Famagusta, with its natural harbor on the east coast, was the ideal location for this trade as it was centrally located between Asia, Africa, and Europe. The city prospered with an influx of merchants, and this was reflected in the building of numerous churches, palaces, and fortifications to protect the city. The northwest corner of the fortifications, facing inland, was one of the most critical elements in the defensive network of the city. It was here that the Venetians constructed the Martinengo Bastion in the 16th century. The bastion is a significant example of state-of-the-art renaissance military architecture and is one of the few remaining in the Levant. Its low profile and massive construction was built slightly higher than the opposing counterscarp to present a small target to cannons while its arrow shape was designed to prevent areas of shelter at its base and protect the ditch and bastions on either side. Martinengo Bastion, at the beginning of the 21st century, was in stable condition, however, there were critical issues given its age and materials. The first concern was structural as there were significant undercuts in the foundation bedrock, the opening of cracks in several vaults, vegetation growth, and uncontrolled water was causing erosion and deterioration of the soft sandstone and mortar. There were also inappropriate later interventions such as concrete floors and concrete caps on the vertical shafts and stairways. In 2013, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Technical Committee for Cultural Heritage, Cyprus (TCCH) with funding from the European Union launched a project to conserve Martinengo Bastion. The team consisted of a bi-communal Cypriot group of professionals and international experts which was led by Fundación Tecnalia. This article will describe the bastion, the conservation philosophy, methodology, and intervention to preserve this unique example of military architecture.
The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences.26th International CIPA Symposium, 2017
The Islamic Nasrid kingdom of Granada occupied the mountainous areas of the southeastern area of the Iberian Peninsula. There, a natural border was established between the Nasrid kingdom and the Christian kingdom of Castile from 1232 to 1492. To control this frontier and establish visual communication between it and the Nasrid center at the Alhambra citadel, an extensive network of watchtowers and defensive towers was constructed. Studies have been done of individual towers, but no comparative study has been undertaken of all of them. Graphic, homogenous, and exhaustively planimetric documentation would bring together existing information on the majority of them and enable comparative analysis. For this reason, this work conducts systematic architectural surveys of all these military structures, using photogrammetry. In addition to studying the construction typology and techniques, the structural capacity of these towers has been analyzed. It examines how they have been affected by human and natural destructive forces, especially earthquakes, which are common in eastern Andalusia. Although all the historical military architecture is protected by the Spanish and Andalusian Heritage laws, many of these medieval towers and their cultural landscapes are in severe risk. The towers are being studied as individual specimens (emphasizing their differences) and as a unit in a typological group (looking for similarities and unifying characteristics). New technologies for Information and Communication are being used in order to disseminate the results among specialists and to make them available to the general public. Guidelines for restoration projects are also being formulated from the cases analyzed.
Defensive Architecture of the Mediterranean, 2023
Gjirokastra, in southern Albania, is a rare example of a well-preserved Ottoman town built around a fortified hilltop. The history of the fortifications is long and unsurprising given its natural defensive geology, prominent views controlling the valley, and nearby fertile fields with access to water. The rocky outcroppings were inhabited as early as 500 BCE, and later, it is speculated that this was the location of the famous Castle of Pyrrhus, built to resist the Roman hegemony. The fortifications and the surrounding settlement underwent numerous changes, especially in the 15th CE century under the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Sultan Bayezid II (1481 – 1512). The defenses reached their zenith in the early 19th century with numerous additions, including an aqueduct by Ali Pasha Tepelena, a local Ottoman administrator. By the 20th century, the castle was converted into a prison under King Zog and continued as a political prison under Albania's communist regime. In 1969, the castle was converted into a museum; in 2005, Gjirokastra and its castle were placed on the World Heritage List. The uninterrupted use and continuous changes culminated in a sizeable multi-layered structure with a wide variety of materials and construction techniques. These changes, combined with unstable geology, active faults, poor drainage, and periods without maintenance, resulted in a structure with areas in poor condition. This paper describes the methodology for identifying and prioritizing emergency conservation measures with limited resources and time. The project began with extensive documentation, a rigorous inspection of all spaces, materials, construction methods, detailed historical research, and stakeholder input. Critically, the project also incorporated geological, hydrological, and structural assessment and analysis. A multidisciplinary decision-making method was developed to identify the most at-risk significant elements while seeking to achieve the objectives of the larger project, i.e., to open currently closed areas of the castle to improve the visitors' experience while enhancing their understanding of the fortifications. The investigations led to the creation of a complete set of drawings, technical specifications, and bills of quantity. The methodology and documentation proved invaluable as soon after starting, the site was closed for six months, travel bans enacted, and in-person meetings prohibited due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Even given this significant event, the team completed project planning on schedule. The castle is currently undergoing conservation managed by the Albanian Development Fund with the support of the World Bank and collaboration with the Ministry of Culture. The project investigations and designs were executed by Cultural Heritage without Borders, Albania, and Proskene Conservation and Cultural Heritage of Spain.
Defensive Architecture of the Mediterranean XV to XVIII centuries - International conference on modern age fortifications of the mediterranean coast, 2017
Los contenidos de esta publicación han sido evaluados por el Comité Científico que en ella se relaciona y según el procedimiento de la ``revisión por pares´´. © editor Víctor Echarri Iribarren © de los textos: los autores © 2017, de la presente edición: Editorial Publicacions Universitat d'Alacant. www.publicaciones.ua.es/ Imprime: ISBN: 978-84-16724-75-8 (Vol. V) Depósito legal: A 493-2017 FORTMED -Modern Age Fortifications of the Mediterranean Coast, Alicante, October 26th, 27th, 28th 2017 425 Defensive Architecture of the Mediterranean. XV to XVIII centuries / Vol V / Echarri Iribarren (Ed.)
2018
Topic 7. Miscellany. Other topics not included above, but compliant to the main topic of the Conference 2. Theoretical concepts. Military Engineering. Defence to "modern" way. New concepts. New ways to defend the kingdoms. Creating shields. The artillery. Utopian projects 3. Research on Built Heritage. Architectural Heritage. Study, knowledge, dissemination. Castles, towers and fortifications. Intervention and Conservation of Architectural Heritage 4. Characterization of geomaterials. Mineral-petrographic, geochemical and physical analysis. Study of the alteration processes. Historical and conservative archaeometric investigations. Operative proposals for restoration. Relationships between physical-technical properties of construction materials and their use: differences and similarities in the Mediterranean 5. Digital Heritage. Digital survey, from 3D laser scanner to photogrammetry. Advanced 3D modeling techniques. Advances in graphical representation. Digital reconstructions. Virtual reality and augmented reality 6. Culture and Management. Interpretation and adding value. Fortified heritage and citizen identity. Management of castles, towers and fortresses. Partecipatory management systems. Management and cultural tourism Conference, (Room 8V, ground floor) COFFEE BREAK. Sala delle Colonne Arrival of conference participants and distribution of documentation 09:00-09:30
Review of: Silke Muth, Peter Schneider, Mike Schnelle & Peter De Staebler (ed.). Ancient fortifications: a compendium of theory and practice (Monographs of the Danish Institute at Athens 18.1). 2016. xv+420 pages, several b&w illustrations, tables. Oxford & Havertown (PA): Oxbow; 978-1-78570- 139-9 hardback $88. Rune Frederiksen, SilkeMuth, Peter Schneider & Mike Schnelle (ed.). Focus on fortifications: new research on fortifications in the ancient Mediterranean and the Near East (Monographs of the Danish Institute at Athens 18.2). 2016. viii+732 pages, numerous b&w illustrations. Oxford & Havertown (PA): Oxbow, 978-1-78570-131-3 hardback $110.
ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, 2023
This study focuses on assessing the defensiveness of medieval fortresses situated along the Mediterranean coast, including the Northern Algerian coast and Southeastern Spain. The proposed methodology involved a two-fold process comprising identification and evaluation. Initially, we identified and geolocated our case studies, deriving their locations from archival sources. We then seamlessly integrated them into a Geographic Information System (GIS) for precise georeferencing on a rasterized landscape. Subsequently, we conducted assessments of visibility, intervisibility, and elevation, which we consider pivotal in determining the degree of defensibility of the fortified sites. Specifically, the aim of this research was to investigate the intricate relationship between natural landscapes and architectural defensive features, with a focus on discerning the influence that the chosen location has on the strategic and defensive significance of the studied fortresses. Our findings reveal that the evolution of those defensive systems within our study context is intricately tied to the physical elements comprising the landscape. These natural constituents have served as a foundation for the architectural and defensive characteristics adopted by medieval builders. Furthermore, we delineated two distinct typologies: the isolated type, intentionally designed to obscure visibility, and the exposed type, characterized by a higher visibility index.
Antiquity, 2017
The two volumes under review are the outcome of the ‘Focus on Fortifications Project’, or ‘FoFo’ as its many participants refer to it here. In their insightful introduction, the editors explain that this project is best characterised as a scholarly network intended to foster new knowledge of ancient fortifications in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Near East (Asia Minor, Syria and Jordan). The resulting two volumes, published in the monograph series of the Danish Institute at Athens, encompass theoretical and methodological considerations (Volume 1), and the results of new studies of specific fortifications (Volume 2).
The city's spare land division into urban plots correlates to careful planning of the existing area and the appearance the building to let. The urban buildings as territorial units obey to the legal, economic and aesthetic rules of the city's territorial management. The city as a historical living object and its historical sites may be regarded as monuments. In order to assure their conservation and rehabilitation it is necessary to define building types. Taking into account the building to let in Lisbon from the 16 th century to the 1st half of the 18 th century a reference pattern has been established. It led to the discovery of a historical site. This analysis allowed for a new evaluation of the internal and external image of the building to let.
In the following article are studied the large fortification projects undertaken by Luis Langot and Pedro Moreau engineers during the 18 th century to reinforce the fortifications of Hondarribia. Involved in a long downward spiral process which conclude with the loosing of the fortified-city status of the city, this period of the history of the fortifications has been eclipsed by other prosperous periods which have monopolized the studies about the fortifications of the city. Although is true that this period doesn't stand up by its building activity, the fortifications of the city will be the target of many studies and projects to resolve the serious defence problems of the fortified city. The article is also a reflection on the various defensive strategies adopted in each projects; a thinking on territorial control strategies, punctual domain ones and the change of war and defense strategy in the last half of the 18 th century.
DEFENSIVE ARCHITECTURE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN XV to XVIII Centuries - Pablo RODRÍGUEZ-NAVARRO (Ed.), 2015
For years we have approached the architectural heritage through the traditional drawings, based on data collection taken from sketches and point to point measurements; however, today we can rely on different systems that make necessary to consider not only the phases of the elevation but the methodology to follow, constituting in itself a study that needs to be addressed from the knowledge of advanced data collection techniques. Thus we must analyze what is special about the work and what are our research needs, which will give rise to a list of products to be obtained and will result in a number of plans to scale, photogrammetries, 3D models, pictures and videos. Only then will we obtain the appropriate methodology which may include traditional direct surveys, photogrammetric surveys (2D correction, 3D restitution), 3D laser scans, drones, photographs, spherical panoramic photographs, video, etc. In the present communication we describe the process followed in determining the methodology that is being carried out in the elevation of a building corpus that presents special characteristics due to the diversity of geographical locations and the dimensions and materials used, as well as its conservation status.
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