On the Statics of the Dome of the Basilica of S.Maria Assunta in Carignano, Genoa

The paper deals with the dome of the Basilica of S. Maria Assunta in Carignano in Genoa, designed by Galeazzo Alessi and built in the XVIth century, for which meridian cracking, rather common in masonry domes, asks for the assessment of the dome. In order to set a general procedure for the assessment this structures, Limit Analysis approaches are here discussed and compared. On the basis of classical Limit Analysis, local (dome only) and global (dome-drum system) collapse mechanisms are considered considering the different behaviour of several structural elements (lantern, shells of the dome, drum, colonnade). A Static (Safe Theorem) and a Kinematic approach are applied to the structure by means of equilibrium limit conditions and kinematically admissible collapse mechanisms. Comparisons between the obtained results are carried out so as to: i) discuss a general approach to the assessment of dome-drum systems based on both numerical tools and standard Limit Analyses approaches; ii) provide a first glance in the assessment of the dome of the Basilica.