Historical static analysis of the coliseum

The paper concerns with the static behaviour of the Coliseum, one of the most important monuments of the roman architecture. The study, which starts from previous studies of the authors, is developed by means of the common static approach, the limit analysis and the use of non linear programs. The following topics are carried out: a) static analysis of the original configuration b) description of the damage heaped by the monument during its whole life and description of the past restoration works c) analysis of the two conjectures concerning if the past earthquakes or, on the contrary, the past dismantlement works were responsible for the damage. With reference to the first conjecture, it is shown that the monument is little sensitive to seismic actions because of the presence of soft foundation soils, of its large mass, stiffness and lateral strength. The second conjecture requires a non linear analysis of the main structures of the monument which is developed by means of a finite element program. The results show that the demolition of at least two adjacent outside piers can produce collapse of an entire vertical strip of the outer masonry wall.