Environmental impact assessment on the stone decay in the archaeological site of Hierapolis (Denizli, Turkey)

Silvia Vettori; Jacopo Cabassi; Emma Cantisani; Cristiano Riminesi

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.038

Environmental impact assessment on the stone decay in the archaeological site of Hierapolis (Denizli, Turkey)

Sci Total Environ. 2019 Feb 10;650(Pt 2):2962-2973. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.038. Epub 2018 Oct 4.

Authors

Silvia Vettori¹, Jacopo Cabassi², Emma Cantisani³, Cristiano Riminesi³

Affiliations

¹ National Research Council, Institute for the Conservation and Valorization of Cultural Heritage, Via Cozzi, 53, Milan, Italy. Electronic address: vettori@icvbc.cnr.it.
² National Research Council, Institute of Geosciences and Earth Resources, Via G. La Pira, 4, Florence, Italy.
³ National Research Council, Institute for the Conservation and Valorization of Cultural Heritage, Via Madonna del Piano, 10, Sesto Fiorentino, FI, Italy.

PMID: 30373072
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.038

Abstract

The archaeological site of Hierapolis (Denizli province, Turkey) is unique in terms of the conservation of marbles and travertines. Environmental factors (i.e. interaction with thermal waters, high thermal stress, CO₂ degassing) and geological aspects (presence of seismic faults, frequent earthquakes, formation of travertine) play a fundamental role in the durability and conservation state of the stone materials. This paper presents a multi-analytical approach aimed to identify the phenomena and causes of stone decay related to environmental conditions. The analyses of alteration and decay phenomena are discussed together with the monitoring of the main environmental parameters and with analyses of waters and gases present in the archaeological site. Finally, the need of a continuous monitoring of the environmental parameters affecting the archaeological site is stressed.

Keywords: Decay; Environmental parameters; Gases; Marble; Monitoring; Travertine; Waters.