Seismic Vulnerability Assessment of the Montecassino Abbey

Montecassino Abbey, located on the summit of Montecassino, is one of the world's most important and oldest monasteries. Due to its historical, artistic, and cultural value, it represents a significant resource for the region, making its preservation and protection a priority for local authorities. This paper is part of a research activity funded by the Regional Directorate of Museums of Lazio, Italian Ministry of Culture, aimed at assessing the seismic safety level of Montecassino Abbey. The research conducted by the team from the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio is summarized in this paper. In particular, in line with the Italian Guidelines for the Assessment and Reduction of Seismic Risk of Cultural Heritage, the first-level evaluation, which focuses on a simplified global modeling strategy for the identification of critical walls within the building, has been first carried out. This is followed by a second and third-level evaluation, which analyzes the seismic capacity of the identified walls that are critical for possible out-of-plane and in-plane failure mechanisms. The results obtained from both levels of investigation are compared and critically analyzed to provide a deeper understanding of the seismic safety level of Montecassino Abbey.