Seismic behaviour of aggregate monumental buildings

The seismic vulnerability assessment of masonry buildings is a very topical and challenging research topic due to the difficulty of studying some of these buildings as independent structures. In historic city centres, these buildings often form part of complex structural systems that differ in terms of geometry, building materials, construction techniques and state of maintenance. This results from continuous urban growth in juxtaposition with and in continuity with the existing built environment. Similar situations exist within very large monumental complexes, such as royal palaces, where some of the aforementioned aspects are less obvious. When assessing the seismic vulnerability of one of the buildings in the complex, interactions with adjacent structures should be considered. Although several studies have addressed these issue in recent years, it is not yet clear how these interactions can be represented in numerical models modelling the entire complex. This paper therefore aims to contribute to the understanding of how interactions with adjacent structures should be taken into account to enable a more accurate seismic assessment of masonry aggregate buildings located in large monumental complexes.