The Belvedere Marittimo Castle in Calabria - Italia: materials and biological degradation

Abstract

Sed ut The Belvedere Marittimo Castle in Calabria (IT), it is on a promontory that leans out the coast and it overhangs the historical nucleus to which it belongs and has a significant visual impact that makes it unique and attractive. To this contributes also the charm due to its architectural structure characterized by the presence of two towers, but also for diffused presence of present vegetation on its surfaces that evoke the sense of the history and of the antiquity. However the castle for its strategic position and for being very near the sea, undergoes degradation actions due to marine aerosol and for the humidity that determines the ideal conditions for the initiation of biological attack processes whose effects are evident on many of the surfaces the monument. These conditions have led to the development of a study for evaluate the effects of biological degradation on the walls of the castle through the analysis of the species more present and of the constitutive materials.