Behind the Scenes of Medieval Roofs

An Overview of the Roofing Systems of Italian Churches

Edited by Angelo Passuello Edited by Michalis Olympios

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Extent: 240 pages

Publisher: L’ERMA di Bretschneider

Subjects: Architecture, Italian Studies, Medieval Studies

Series: Bibliotheca Archaeologica

Series volume number: 90

Language: English

Paperback (Published)

(February 2026)

ISBN: 9788891334305

8.46 x 11 inches

Price: $225.00

In stock

The creation of varied roofing systems held fundamental importance in forming the architectural language of sacred space in the Middle Ages. The aim of this book is to delve deeper into some case studies of Italian churches from the Middle Ages to the dawn of the Modern Era with a multidisciplinary perspective. 


Several structural elements held fundamental importance in forming the architectural language of sacred space in the Middle Ages. The most important of these, although little studied in Italy, was the creation of varied roofing systems (wooden roofs, stone vaults, domes). The roof decisively conditioned the internal spatiality and assumed primary importance in conditioning the external form of the churches because the entire construction was based on the shape that the roof would have. The aim of this book is to delve deeper into some case studies of Italian churches from the Middle Ages to the dawn of the Modern Era with a multidisciplinary perspective (architecture, art history, archaeology, archaeometry, restoration). This publication forms part of the activities of the CaMeRoofs (Cataloguing Medieval Roofs) project, coordinated by the University of Cyprus and funded by the European Commission under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (ID: 101104788).

Acknowledgements

Angelo Passuello
Recent Contributions to the Study of Medieval Roofing Systems in Italy. Status Quaestionis and New Research Perspectives

Francesco Salvestrini
Shielding the Vault of Heaven. Cultural and Historical Considerations Regarding the Starry Sky on the Ceilings of Italian Medieval Churches

Alessandra Panicco
The Vaulting Systems of the Early Carthusian Churches in Italy (Twelfth-Fourteenth Centuries). Construction Techniques and European Comparisons

Angelo Giuseppe Landi, Emanuele Zamperini
Timber Roof Structures in Medieval Churches in Cremona. The Case of the Church of San Francesco

Angelo Passuello
The Roofing Systems of Verona Cathedral (Twelfth-Sixteenth Centuries). Construction Phases, Restorations, Dendrochronology, and Architectural Framework

Laura Jacobus
Roofing and Re-roofing the Arena Chapel (Cappella degli Scrovegni) in Padua (1303-1305)

Matteo Bigongiari, Stefano Bertocci
Behind the Dome: The Hidden Roofs of Brunelleschi’s Old Sacristy. A Digital Survey Approach to Medieval Construction in the Renaissance

Maurizio Ficari
Romanesque Churches with Domes Enclosed by Tiburios in the Maremma and Sienese Areas

Roberta Cerone
Mendicant Churches and Hybrid Roofs. The Case of Rieti

Roberta Ferretti, Anastasia Cottini
Integrated Digital Documentation Methodologies for the Knowledge of Medieval Religious Complexes. The Porziuncola Church in Santa Maria degli Angeli, Assisi

Michele Colaianni
Hidden Presences. The Medieval Wooden Trusses of Matera’s Churches

Arianna Carannante
Domes on Axis in the Benedictine Churches of the Terra di Bari (Eleventh-Twelfth Centuries)

Nicoletta Usai
Roofing Systems in Medieval Sardinia. Types, Materials, and Craft Traditions

  • Edited by Angelo Passuello
  • Edited by Michalis Olympios