Medieval Bourgeois Tenement Houses as an Archetype for Contemporary Architectural and Construction Solutions: The Example of Historic Downtown Gdańsk

Abstract

The basic urban tissue of medieval European cities consisted of brick townhouses. In the cities of northern Europe, these tenements were characterised by a block based on an elongated rectangular plan, covered with a gable roof with a ridge oriented perpendicularly to the street. The side walls of the tenement house were common for both neighbours and constituted a basic structural element. The gable façades were not loaded with ceilings, providing freedom in shaping them. The aim of this work is to determine the reasons why this method of shaping tenement houses in historical city centres has survived to the present day, becoming an archetype for contemporary architectural and construction solutions, despite the passage of time, numerous historical events, war damage, changing architectural styles, fashions and building techniques and technologies. The historical centre of Gdańsk has become the research material in this paper, where by means of such methods as historical source material analysis (iconographic), observation (operationalisation of preserved historical objects), comparative analysis of completed contemporary investments, and 3D modelling of structural systems, an attempt has been made to determine the main factors determining contemporary architectural and structural solutions. The reason for the extraordinary durability of this type of construction model can be found in the enormous rationality and efficiency of this solution. It allows for very intensive use of land, easy access of all front elevations to the main communication routes, cheapness of construction resulting from small spans and use of common structural walls for the neighbouring buildings, ease of shaping gable elevations, and fire safety. Aesthetic considerations are probably also important here, although it should be assumed that their significance began to grow only in the second half of the 19th century. However, it seems that the most important factor which made the model of the mediaeval bourgeois tenement house become an archetype for contemporary architectural and construction solutions is the timeless message contained in this model, a specific code allowing it to be unambiguously identified as a form of urban house – a place of safe living and at the same time a visible sign of the rich history of European cities, an element creating their cultural and spatial identity, a component of the living, constantly transforming urban fabric.

Seismic assessment of high-rise buildings through dynamic nonlinear analysis

“…To avoid this, recommendations are given on strengthening or replacing the weak structures. Investigating the impact of kinematic excitation on the wall of a three-dimensional building [Taraszkiewicz et al, 2021], researchers carried out a series of numerical tests, which made it possible to determine the sensitivity of nonlinear dynamic systems to changes in properties of the medium and density of discretization, obtained with the finite element method (FEM). The study was performed on a 2D model of a frame-and-panel wall and a 3D model of a low-rise building, which were exposed to loads (kinematic input data) at time intervals consistent with earthquake accelerograms.…”

“…The study was performed on a 2D model of a frame-and-panel wall and a 3D model of a low-rise building, which were exposed to loads (kinematic input data) at time intervals consistent with earthquake accelerograms. The construction materials (masonry and concrete) were described using the Barcelona plastic damage model [Taraszkiewicz et al, 2021]. The advantage of this model is that it allows depicting the real properties of geomaterials, as well as considering material failure under cyclic loading.…”

Architecture: Integration of Art and Engineering

“…It is an example of cultural heritage with a tendency to support form and function. A striking example of cultural heritage is the paper [12] about the historic centre of Gda ńsk, including burgher residential buildings in the context of archetypes of contemporary architectural and construction solutions. Targowski and Kulowski [13] present the European Solidarity Centre Building in Gda ńsk.…”

Architectural and Urban Planning Solutions for the Protection of Heritage Buildings in the Context of Terrorist Attacks: Following the Example of Passive Protection Systems

“…In recent years, several studies on the mechanical characteristics of laminated glass with PVB interlayers have been carried out, assisted by theoretical analyses [19][20][21][22][23][24][25], experimental methods [26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34], as well as numerical simulations [27,[35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53]. Primarily, Xu et al [31][32][33][34] have carried out experimental studies concerning the experimental prediction of braking and the formation of cracks in the glass layer.…”

“…Primarily, Xu et al [31][32][33][34] have carried out experimental studies concerning the experimental prediction of braking and the formation of cracks in the glass layer. Regarding the numerical simulations of modeling the breaking of the glass layer, the element deletion function available in the LS-DYNA or ABAQUS software has been employed [27,[35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43]52,53], together with the continuum damage method [44,45] with the combined discreet (DE) and finite (FE) element method [46][47][48][49], as well as the extended finite element method XFEM [50]. Numerical simulations of glass windows/facades under blast loading were carried out by Kevin C. et al [54] and Larcher et al [55].…”