Integrated techniques for analysis and monitoring of historical monuments: the case of San Giovanni al Sepolcro in Brindisi, southern Italy

In this paper, an integrated prospecting performed in the atypical Romanesque church of San Giovanni al Sepolcro in Brindisi, southern Italy is presented. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and ultrasonic data have been gathered on the circular load-bearing colonnade of the monument. Here the results achieved on two of the columns are shown. The GPR data have been processed and have allowed to identify and focus the medieval internal metallic hinges joining the stone trunks in one of the columns and some reinforcement rebars in the other (and probably also the residual track of a restored fracture). The ultrasonic data have allowed to monitor the state of compactness and to assess the effectiveness of reinforcement interventions on the columns.