1783-1908. Dalle case baraccate in legno agli edifici intelaiati in calcestruzzo armato nell’area dello stretto di Messina

This short review focuses on the Strait of Messina seismic area to point out the evolution of the aseismic legislation from the 1783 earthquake to the one in 1908, as far as quake proof building techniques are concerned. The wood based Casa Baraccata system was standardized after the 1783 to provide safe houses to rebuild cities and proved to be quake re-sistant during the catastrophic earthquake in 1908. After this quake, the Italian legislation posed again the compulsory adoption of this building system and opened the path to updated materials, like reinforced concrete and steel-concrete (ferbeton) self-adapting to the market trends. The opportunity to study the files of Porcheddu’s archives (here limited to two different buildings) reveals the mood of the time in considering “new” materials, techniques and design criteria. Two centu-ry later, the Casa Baraccata system has been re-studied because of its favourable behaviour, while the ferbeton system and theHennebique system are waiting for an on-field validation.