Sapienza University of Rome - Italy

Faculty Member, Dipartimento di Storia, Disegno e Restauro dell'Architettura

About

Architect, Ph. D., Associate Professor of History of Ancient and Medieval Architecture, Architecture Faculty. Winner, in 2010, of a national assessment procedure launched by the Milan Polytechnic for full professor for the Italian Scientific Disciplinary Sector "History of Architecture" (ICAR 18).

Scientific Research

His outstanding international research on Antiquity and the Middle Ages has led, amongst other significant achievements, to close relations with the Italian Institute for Africa and the Orient (IsIAO), the Italian Archaeological Mission in Pakistan. A five-year agreement has been signed with the Institute and Mission to study Indo-Greek architecture between the third and fourth century B.C. in the Indian sub-continent, to carry out three long term missions at the Italian Archaeological Institute in Pakistan, and write papers on: Notazioni architettoniche sul registro A dello Stupa principale di Saidu Sharif I (2001), Aspects of the Buddhist Sacred Areas in Swat (2006) and – as co-author with Domenico Faccenna – a book on: Architectures in the Swat Valley, Pakistan (stupas, viharas, dwelling units), currently in press.
His interest in Greek and Roman Antiquity led to the systematic study of important Greek and Roman sacred areas (from 1993 onwards) in Greece, Turkey and Tunisia, and the publication of the papers: L'Eretteo. Trasformazioni di cultura sull'Acropoli di Atene (1999), Grecità augustee: architetture ateniesi al tempo di Vitruvio (2001), Il Mausoleo di Adriano (2005), Per una storiografia dell’architettura romana antica (2009), Geografia architettonica dell’antica Colchide fino al primo secolo d.C. (2011). He edited the reprint (authorised by the Crema family) of the book by Luigi Crema, Significato dell’architettura romana (2009) and has curated the publication of unpublished writings by Claudio Tiberi, Culture e momenti d’architettura antichi e medievali (2011). He is currently the scientific supervisor of a five-year agreement with the Institute of Archaeology, Belgrade (Serbia) to study religious, civil and military architecture of ancient and late-ancient settlements along the eastern limes of the Roman Empire between the first and fifth century A.D. currently the territory of Serbia and neighbouring areas.
As part of his focus on the Middle Ages he initially studied mendicant orders in Italy (1995) and then went on to carry out a ten-year research campaign in the eastern Mediterranean after being granted permission by the Greek Minister of Culture and receiving the logistic support of the Italian Archaeological School in Athens. This campaign culminated in the publication of a monograph entitled Chios Medievale. Storia architettonica di un isola della Grecia bizantina (2008). More recently he has begun to study alterations and changes to the Cathedral of Orvieto on behalf of the Opera of the Cathedral (2011).
During this period he also carried out important studies on modern military architecture in Europe, their relationship with the territory and large urban settlements. This study led to the publication of the monograph entitled Castel Sant’Angelo, la fortezza di Roma (1995) and the paper Dalla spiaggia di Nettuno. Difese dello Stato ecclesiastico in età moderna (2006).
Furthermore, his interest for changes in large modern and contemporary architectures has led to the publication of books including Carlo Maderno in S. Pietro: note sul prolungamento della basilica vaticana (1997); Roma 1922-1943. I concorsi di architettura (2010) and Luigi Moretti al Foro Mussolini: la palestra del duce e altri inediti (2010). The latter is part of a collaboration agreement with CONI (Italian National Olympic Committee) to study the Swimming Pool building at the Foro Italico complex in Rome.
At present he is completing a research which he coordinated and carried out with a team from the National Fire’s Brigade of the Italian Ministry of Home Affairs (2010-2012) regarding the damage to large and small monuments and the urban fabric of settlements during the 2009 earthquake in the Abruzzi and, more in general, the methods used to put into practice the general documentation system developed by the National Fire’s Brigade regarding urgent large-scale relief during major national disasters: the ensuing two-volume monograph is entitled: Dopo la polvere. Territori, città e architetture d’Abruzzo dopo il sisma del 2009 (drafting stage).

Overall he has published 58 papers and articles and 2 books, while 5 papers and one book are currently going to press; he has delivered papers at 20 national and international meetings, of which eleven in the past ten years; he has organised two meetings, one in 2009 for the National Centre of Studies on History of Architecture (Architetture e città nel Medioevo, Rome, May 12, 2010) and in 2011 for the Department of History, Drawing and Restoration of Architecture of the Sapienza - University of Rome (Giornate di studio in memoria di Claudio Tiberi, Rome, February 17-18, 2011).

Fellow of the National Centre of Studies on History of Architecture since 1987; member of the teaching board of the Research Doctorate on History and restoration of architecture at Sapienza - University of Rome since 2001; since 2001, also member of the editorial staff of the magazine Quaderni dell’Istituto di Storia dell’Architettura; fellow of the Italian Institute for Africa and the Orient (IsIAO) since 2007 and member of the Italian Archaeological Mission in Pakistan; since 2010, member of the scientific committee of the magazines, Rivista dell’Istituto per la Storia dell’Arte Lombarda, and Thiasos - Rivista di archeologia e storia dell'architettura antica.

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