Metallic materials between restoration and rehabilitation

The technological innovation of the late 19th Century, and the need of to rebuild the historic centres damaged by the World Wars, set up the debate over the legitimacy of use of modern materials in the restoration of monuments and rehabilitation of ordinary buildings: In the post-war period, the theoretical position lead to the Restoration Charters: the attitude towards modern materials passes from a total trust to a balanced mistrust, especially when the conservation becomes the primary goal of the restoration project. In contrast, in the refurbishment of ordinary buildings, the Italian tradition moves from a discrete use of steel to a suggested by handbooks. This research wants to explain the different approaches to the metallic materials, highlighting theirs extraordinary potential, both technical and formal, to achieve the aim of conservation or transformation.