Studio della cupola del Duomo di Massa Marittima

In the context of the safety assessment of ancient masonry constructions, the structural modeling can provide an important contribution to the diagnosis of the damage, as well as an instrument for the prediction of the effectiveness of consolidation and restoration interventions. In this paper the structural analysis of the dome of the medieval cathedral of Massa Marittima is presented in order to investigate the cause of a crack pattern which seems incomprehensible at first glance. The analysis has been conducted via the NOSA-ITACA code, developed in the framework of the project "NOSA-ITACA - Tools for modeling and assessing the structural behaviour of ancient constructions" (2011-2013), funded by the Region of Tuscany. The masonry has been modeled as a nonlinear elastic material, known as masonry-like (or no-tension) material. The assessment of the structure safety factor has been performed thanks to a detailed threedimensional model that, once calibrated in the light of the surveyed crack patterns, has also been employed for the design of appropriate reinforcement interventions.