Due testi inediti del sec. XVIII ovvero l’autorappresentazione di una comunità

Le numerose narrazioni di Taormina costruite “dall’esterno” spesso si limitano a descrizioni di monumenti e panorami, più o meno ispirate o originali, riservando agli abitanti, in genere, solo osservazioni piuttosto convenzionali e cursorie sulla loro povertà o “primitività”. Nella Italienische Reise, ad esempio, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe riserva alla sua breve visita a Taormina una celebre descrizione, nella quale, però, gli abitanti sono come “invisibili”. Jean Houël, invece, avendo soggiornato per periodi più lunghi in città, è tra i pochi a descrivere, generalmente in maniera più originale e acuta di altri, sia i monumenti sia gli abitanti

Kalathoi iberici da Taormina. Aggiornamento sulla diffusione della ceramica iberica dipinta in Sicilia

La publicación de algunos fragmentos de sombreros de copa hallados en Taormina presenta la oportunidad de considerar globalmente el fenómeno de su presencia en Sicilia.La pubblicazione di alcuni frammenti di sombreros de copa da Taormina offre lo spunto per riconsiderare globalmente la presenza di analoghi manufatti in Sicilia

An acoustic emission approach to the structural health monitoring of historical metallic tie-rods

The application of Non-Destructive Testing and Structural Health Monitoring systems in historical buildings is of great interest due to the need to guarantee safety and conservation. The present memory focuses on the case study of the historical wrought iron tie-rods of Duomo di Milano, Italy. In recent years, two of these elements presented critical failures. Consequently, a monitoring methodology based on acoustic emission was defined. First, the fracture toughness of wrought iron was characterized by employing standard small-scale specimens taken from one of the failed tie-rods. Meanwhile, acoustic emission was acquired to define a methodology for detecting and localizing the damage events, separating those due to background noise by applying suitable pattern recognition algorithms. Subsequently, a tensile test was performed on a full-scale section of the same tie-rod. Before and after the test, phased-array ultrasonic testing and magnetic particle inspections were carried out to identify and map defects and their possible development due to load application. Finally, it was possible to conclude that magnetic inspections allow identifying the presence of surface defects effectively, phased-array testing estimates the geometry of the defect accurately, and acoustic emission is a promising technique for monitoring the structural integrity of historical metallic tie-rods

Xyloglucan, alginate and k-carrageenan hydrogels on spheroids of adipose stem cells survival; preparation, mechanical characterization, morphological analysis and injectability

The therapeutic capabilities of autologous stem cells can be fully exploited if their survival after implantation is improved. For the first time, we compared three hydrogels, with different chemical structure, morphology, and viscoelastic properties, where the same differentiation factors were immobilized and spheroids from adipose stem cells (SASCs) were incorporated. The aim is to understand if hydrogel characteristics could influence the viability of the embedded stem cells. Specifically, hydrogels of partially degalactosylated xyloglucan (dXG), sodium alginate (Alg) and k-carrageenan (kC) were produced. The structure of the networks was probed by swelling/erosion measurements, rheological and morphological analysis. Cell viability was measured after 7 and 21 days. When SASCs were incubated under stemness conditions, dXG and kC hydrogels provide the optimal environment for cell viability. When incubated in the chondrogenic or osteogenic medium, a clear correlation was found between the storage and loss moduli and cell viability. Hydrogels with the lowest shear stiffness promote stem-cell differentiation and proliferation. The systems, particularly dXG, seem more similar to natural ECM and able to recreate niches, that colonized with stem cells could represent a real support in regenerative therapies. The injectability of formulations was evaluated to determine if they could be used for minimally invasive regenerative medicine interventions

Taormina 1465: la concessione del teatro antico (lu Goliseu alias lu Palazu) come residenza signorile e altri casi di riuso di monumenti antichi nella Sicilia del XV secolo

Con un atto dell’8 novembre 1465 il viceré di Sicilia Lope Ximénez, in nome di re Giovanni II d’Aragona, concede a Guglielmo Zumbo il teatro antico di Taormina, indicato come quoddam hedificium anticum et dirutum […] vulgariter appellatum lu goliseu alias lu palazu, con il permesso di costruivi all’interno ma senza danneggiare il monumento. Il testo dell’atto, che si pubblica per la prima volta nel presente contributo, offre molteplici spunti di ricerca. Si tenterà di delineare, innanzitutto, il processo semantico per cui, nell’atto del 1465, si usa la parola goliseu per indicare il teatro antico, con riferimento alle attestazioni più antiche e a quelle coeve, senza trascurare la lunga sopravvivenza di tale denominazione, usata ancora nel XVIII secolo. Si cercherà, successivamente, di individuare le caratteristiche del palazzo signorile effettivamente edificato nel teatro antico dopo questa concessione, e di ricostruire il ruolo della famiglia Zumbo nella storia di Taormina, e si concluderà menzionando altri casi di riuso di monumenti antichi nella Sicilia del XV secolo.With a decree issued on November 8th, 1465, the viceroy of Sicily, Lope Ximénez, on behalf of king John II of Aragon, granted Guglielmo Zumbo the ancient theatre of Taormina, indicated as quoddam hedificium anticum et dirutum […] vulgariter appellatum lu goliseu alias lu palazu. The act gave Zumbo permission to build within the theatre’s interior as long as the monument remained undamaged. The text of the act, which is published for the first time in this paper, offers many possible avenues of research. This contribution aims to outline first of all the semantic process according to which, in the act of 1465, the word goliseu is used to indicate the ancient theatre with reference to more ancient and coeval attestations, without neglecting the long survival of this denomination, still used in the 18th century. The characteristics of the lordly mansion effectively built inside the theatre after the concession will then be reconstructed, together with the role of the Zumbo family in the history of Taormina. Other examples of reuse of ancient monuments in 15th century Sicily will be discussed in the last part of the paper

La « campagna classica » di Bagnoli : notizie e ipotesi sulla provenienza delle iscrizioni pubbliche greche di Tauromenion

L’iscrizione degli Strateghi e un buon numero di rendiconti finanziari di Tauromenion sono stati scoperti nell’area di Bagnoli, a non molta distanza dal Teatro antico. Lo studio si propone di riconsiderare il corpus di iscrizioni pubbliche greche della città, con particolare attenzione ai dati di rinvenimento e alla storia delle ricerche, e di valutare l’importanza di Bagnoli nella topografia di Tauromenion. In appendice sono trascritti vari documenti, alcuni dei quali pubblicati per la prima volta.The inscription of the Stratagoi and a large number of the financial accounts of Tauromenion were uncovered in the Bagnoli area, not far from the ancient Theatre. This paper aims at reconsidering the corpus of public Greek inscriptions of the town, with particular attention to the circumstances of their discovery and to the history of the researches, and at evaluating the importance of Bagnoli in the topography of Tauromenion. In the appendix various documents are transcribed, some of which published for the first time

The Prince of Biscari and the Prince of Torremuzza, «i due Dioscuri della passione antiquaria settecentesca»

Ignazio Vincenzo Paternò Castello di Biscari (1719-1786) e Gabriele Lancillotto Castelli di Torremuzza (1727-1792) sono certamente tra le figure più importanti della cultura siciliana del XVIII secolo. Ben conosciuti a livello europeo, punto di riferimento per i dotti viaggiatori che, sempre più numerosi, visitavano l’isola, in corrispondenza con studiosi italiani ed europei, i due principi sono celebri, in particolare, per la loro incessante attività collezionistica, per il loro impegno nella tutela dei monumenti antichi e, soprattutto nel caso di Torremuzza, per le loro pubblicazioni scientifiche riguardanti, a volte – è specialmente il caso di Biscari – oggetti delle loro raccolte. In questo studio si pubblica integralmente, per la prima volta, il reciproco carteggio che, pur conservato solo in parte, offre un interessante quadro dei grandi temi dell’antiquaria settecentesca: collezionismo, ricerche archeologiche, studi eruditi, senza perdere di vista la dimensione “sociale” e impegnata che, secondo la mentalità più avanzata del tempo, doveva essere tipica dell’intellettuale, soprattutto se aristocratico.Ignazio Vincenzo Paternò Castello di Biscari (1719-1786) and Gabriele Lancillotto Castelli di Torremuzza (1727-1792) are certainly among the most important representatives of 18th century Sicilian culture. Well known all over Europe, hosts for the learned travellers that, always more numerous, visited the Island, corresponding with Italian and European scholars, the two princes are famous, in particular, for their incessant collecting activity, for their engagement in the safeguard of ancient monuments and, especially for Torremuzza, for their scientific publications regarding sometime – chiefly for Biscari – objects of their collections. In this study, it is integrally published, for the first time, their reciprocal correspondence that, although only partially preserved, offers an interesting picture of the great themes of 18th century antiquarianism: collecting, archaeological investigations, learned studies, not disregarding the “social” and engaged dimension that, according the more progressive mentality of the time, should be typical of the intellectual, especially if an aristocratic one

Incremental dynamic based fragility assessment of reinforced concrete structures: Stationary vs. non-stationary artificial ground motions

Artificial and natural records are commonly employed by researches and practitioners to perform refined seismic assessments of structures. The techniques for the generation of artificial records and their effectiveness in producing signals which are significantly representative of real earthquakes are still debated as well as results of the consequent seismic assessment to expect from their application. The paper presents an in-depth comparative study highlighting the effect of employing different typologies of artificial ground motion records on seismic assessment results, especially addressing seismic fragility curves. Three sets of 50 stationary, nonstationary evenly modulated and fully nonstationary accelerograms are generated based on design spectrum compatibility criteria. Standard nonlinear time history analyses of 4 reference structural models of reinforced concrete (RC) structures having different degree of complexity are firstly carried out monitoring results in terms significant engineering seismic demand parameters. So far, incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) is used to derive fragility curves. Peak ground acceleration and spectral acceleration are used as possible intensity measures in order to compare results of seismic fragility assessment. The combination of structural irregularity, severe damage and input typology is finally analyzed and discussed in order to assess the degree of dependence of fragility assessments on the typology of signal adopted