Ancient stone masonry constructions

A very large part of the vernacular built heritage consists of masonry buildings. This heritage needs to be protected and enhanced as it participates in preserving the cultural identity of a community and contributes to extending the value of stone resources for sustainable and eco-friendly new buildings. In this chapter, the masonry construction is analyzed at different scale levels: compositional and mechanical characterizations of materials, descriptions of wall types, mechanical performance of masonry structures, environmental performance of masonry constructions, and innovative applications in modern architecture.