ČAUŠEVIĆ AMIR1, HRASNICA MUSTAFA2, RUSTEMPAŠIĆ NERMAN3
1 Ass.Prof.dr.,Faculty of Architecture, Sarajevo University, Structural Department, causevicamir@hotmail.com
2 Prof.dr., Faculty of Civil Engineering, Sarajevo University, Structural Department, hrasnica@bih.net.ba
3 Ass.Prof.dr, Faculty of Architecture, Sarajevo University, Department for Architectural Structures and Building Technology, nermanr@gmail,com
The towers of the sacred buildings are of special interest, from the aesthetical and structural point of view. Therefore, besides fulfilling certain functions (practical ones), emphasized are the feelings of beauty and its manifestation. Sacred buildings towers are very often the main bench marks of urban complex, which dominate over the other building structures and form recognizable image of the city. Intervention in the established architectural language ambience, buildings as well and established visual codes, required understanding of values formed in a particular space and time. In seismic active areas historical buildings are mostly very vulnerable to the stronger earthquake motions. The seismic response of sacred buildings towers should be carefully analyzed. Heavy damages or even failure of historical towers involves not only a cultural loss but also a hazard induced on near-standing buildings. Thus, this behavior can significantly affect the performance on entire sections of historical city centers. There is variety of causes for severe damages and possible collapses, ranging from insufficient bearing capacity to inevitable construction “mistakes”. In this paper 10 minarets and church towers are presented, carefully chosen as a representative of cultural heritage. The computer program SAP 2000[1] was implemented. Analysis has been conducted with a view to determining their dynamic properties and analyzing their response with reference to different levels of seismicity and wind loading in order to assess the vulnerability of tall slender structures. The investigation of existing towers addresses: geometry, building techniques and structural performance. The results obtained are valuable for choosing appropriate repairing, strengthening and preservation methods. [2, 3, 4]
Keywords: masonry, earthquake, cultural heritage, minaret, church tower