ACQUA DA INVASIONE NELLA CHIESA DELL’ANNUNZIATA A SESSA AURUNCA (CE). LA DIAGNOSTICA PROPEDEUTICA ALL’APPROCCIO SUI BENI CULTURALI

The conservative restoration objective could be achieved through an approach to cultural heritage, optimized by diagnostics. So, it is possible to identify the causes of degradation, to monitor the effects of interventions and to guide future choices. The validity of this approach is testified by the interventions made on the Church of the Annunziata di Sessa Aurunca (CE). Inappropriate interventions and a lack of planned maintenance had caused widespread degradation. The presence of humidity was due to rising damp and condensation. After the first thermographic surveys, the restoration work began. The validation of the results had emerged from the monitoring through thermographic analysis iterated over time, which had allowed to measure the effectiveness of the interventions and to optimize the choices towards more effective actions too. The monitoring through non-destructive analysis has made it possible to develop a methodological approach that can be generalized to the historical building. Diagnostics become a system of objective measurement not only of degradation but also of the regression of degradation itself. In the reality of the restoration site, diagnostics are often overlooked with a view to reducing overall costs. This case study shows how important it is to sensitize professionals to make use of diagnostics in the approach to cultural heritage and in particular, in the case of conservative restoration, to make this preparatory phase more than desirable.