<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> Concerning the care of our Built Heritage, one of the most important problem that was observed after an earthquake is the speed in the reaction, aiming to minimize the damages provoked by the shakes. As a matter of fact, the necessary time for the reaction of the rescue teams should be not too long, in order to avoid further damages provoked by the future shakes. Thus, the best way to minimize this type of damage is to design appropriate shoring systems that replace the lack of stiffness provoked by earthquake as soon as possible. In this sense, it’s necessary to know many information of a damaged monument, such as: the geometry, the materials and the structural characteristics, the presence of previous alterations and/or restorations, etc. Unfortunately, the accessibility to this kind of information is not always available after an earthquake, due to the possible damages provoked to the buildings, where the public archives and the documentation are normally stored (L’Aquila 2009, Amatrice 2016).</p><p>The awareness of this problem started immediately after the serious earthquake that hit the city of L’Aquila in 2009. Then, it became more urgent after 2016, when the extended and continued earthquake in the Centre of Italy provoked increasing damages to buildings and monuments. In particular, an important role in the churches’ collapses that had occurred during this last earthquake was due to the difficulty in finding the necessary information to design proper shoring systems.</p><p>Nowadays, starting from the experience of L’Aquila, teams composed by functionaries of the Ministry of Culture, engineers from different universities and special members of the Fire Brigade have developed and improved various models for the management of the emergency phases. Using the modern geomatics tools (i.e. Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), Terrestrial Laser Scanners (TLS), Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS)), it’s possible to achieve the digital acquisition of many building’s data and characteristics (i.e. through the 3D Object recognition and reconstruction, the point cloud analysis, etc.).</p><p>This article examines some of the most interesting solutions that were adopted after the recent Italian earthquakes (L’Aquila 2009, Emilia-Lombardia 2012, Centre of Italy 2016) by some of the major public Entities (Superintendences, Italian Fire Brigade). Moreover, it evaluates the possibility to enhance both the competences and the tools that have been until now developed, with the purpose to use them for an effective Built Heritage prevention, without having to wait a new emergency phase to adopt them.</p>

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Vernacular architecture has become a full part of our cultural heritage, since it constitutes evidence of our material culture and is tied to specific historical/geographical contexts. This type of 'lesser' heritage has withstood various transformations over time, whether negative transformations due to abandonment, or positive transformations due to expansion and renovation work on historical buildings or their simple adaptation to new living conditions. Thus, vernacular architecture often presents intrinsic vulnerabilities resulting from all the transformations it has undergone. The presence of this type of vulnerability within the vernacular built heritage also constitutes an even greater risk for buildings located in seismic areas, as this could lead to an increase in the level of damage due to an earthquake, often with irreversible losses. Achieving a good level of knowledge about the vulnerability of historical buildings in seismic areas is therefore important for their adequate preservation. This not only allows preventive maintenance to be planned, but also because when an earthquake occurs, this type of knowledge would allow decisions to be made with greater awareness regarding where to intervene first, and to more quickly identify where safety interventions for the most vulnerable buildings must be realised. As is well demonstrated by the collapses caused by the earthquakes that hit Central Italy in 2016, the possibility of promptly securing damaged historical buildings is of fundamental importance for conserving the built heritage damaged by an earthquake. To this end, the contribution describes some of the main instruments available in Italy for technicians and functionaries that intervene during a seismic emergency to secure the architectural heritage, with suggestions as to how these tools can be strengthened.

Fortified architecture between preservation and reuse strategies: the twentieth century restoration projects of Castelfranco in Finale LigureThe town of Finale Ligure, situated on the western coast of Liguria, was the site of the Del Carretto Marquisate until the sixteenth century. After that, it was under the control of the Spanish Crown (seventeenth century) and it has been an independent territory of the Republic of Genoa for a long time. The three castles were built on the top of Finale hills and they were the symbol of its independence. Gavone castle, established on the top of the historical town, has been the site of the Marquisate since the twelfth century. S. Giovanni castle was built by the Spanish in order to improve the town defensive system in the second half of the seventeenth century. Castelfranco, built by the Genoese in the fourteenth century, was rehashed many times by the Spanish and in the nineteenth century by the Savoia family. The three castles still recall these historical events and are therefore witnesses of the Finale present and past history. They are the result of the different transformations occurred over the centuries. In recent times, Castelfranco has been opened to the public and today it houses art exhibitions and cultural events. The restoration of the castle is the last step of a long-lasting rehabilitation project history that has been developed since the 1900s, when the Municipality suggested to turn it into a hotel. The article analyses the restoration projects of Castelfranco that have been carried out in the first half of the twentieth century, which had different methodologies and approaches. Though this study the article highlights the perception that the town had about the castle, identifying the changes in the balance between reuse and conservation strategies after the first Italian preservation laws.