TYPOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION OF CHURCHES CONSTRUCTED DURING POST-BYZANTINE PERIOD IN ALBANIA

Year 2015, Volume: 3 Issue: 1, 1 - 15, 07.01.2015

Hüseyin Bilgin

Abstract

Monumental historical structures are symbols of the cultural identity and continuity and they are the main part of the heritage and the human history. They should be preserved in their own settings with their original characteristics or with as minimum changes as possible. On the other hand, natural or man-made hazards cause a serious risk for the survival of them. They are the major points for the continuity of history. In order to conserve these buildings in their original situation and develop suitable restoration projects without neglecting any of the cultural values, it is vital to determine the current conditions of these structures. The knowledge of existing buildings is approached by considering different levels of analyses; historical, materials, typological classification and documentation, observed damage levels, effectiveness of retrofitting techniques, ..etc.   In order to learn the values that we hold and the existing conditions of these buildings, the inventory of the whole masonry churches constructed during Post-Byzantine period in Albania should be documented. Preserving and strengthening programs could be done on the basis of this documentation and conservation strategies could be developed according to them. From this point of view, this paper aims to make the classification of the churches in Albania built in post-Byzantine period based on the plan and spatial composition of these structures and outline the features in terms of architectural, structural, functional and components’ features.

Keywords

architectural heritage; conservation; historic churches; structural intervention; typology analysis; spatial composition

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