ARCHITETTURE PER LE ACQUE SOTTERRANEE. CONSERVAZIONE E VALORIZZAZIONE DEL PATRIMONIO CAVO A PALERMO

The valorisation policies and protection of “visible” architectural heritage are often promoted by the public opinion, that immediately perceives in the artefacts degradation the risk of an irreparable loss. Conversely, the safeguard of the underground built heritage is ever more difficult to achieve. It is the case of the "hollow architecture" functional to ensuring water provisioning in the Piana di Palermo: “horizontal wells” and “qanat”. These artefacts date back to the sixteenth century, though an older dating is not to be excluded. The need for studies on underground historical construction is more evident if we consider the scarcity of documentary material and specialised literature. Furthermore, the need of a deeper on the subject is shown by an increasing number of collapses in urban area. Some case-studies has been examined, allowing to identify a record of damages to which these artefacts are usually subject.