Historical structures are mainly masonry structures, and they are composed of blocks made of natural stones, bricks or both, and they are built in different patterns with or without mortar. As Japan is a seismically active country, an emphasis was given on the seismic response and stability of restored masonry structures such as arches and walls during earthquakes and natural rock structures. Furthermore, The deterioration by atmospheric agents, bombing and seismic shaking damaged some of these structures. The authors describes the outcomes of experimental, limiting equilibrium and numerical studies on the stability of historical masonry structures under dynamic loads such as those induced by earthquakes and their implications are discussed.
Historical structures are mainly masonry type, and they are composed of blocks made of natural stones, bricks or both, and they are built in different patterns with or without mortar. The authors have been recently involved with the restoration of the famous historical structure in Okinawa Island such as Shuri Castle, Nakagusuku Castle, Katsuren Castle, Gushikawa Castle, an arch bridge in Iedonchi royal garden and Yodore royal mausoleum of the Ryukyu Imperial period, as well as the assessment of static and dynamic stability of some natural rock structures such as Wakariji.
As Japan is a seismically active country, an emphasis was given on the seismic response and stability of restored masonry structures such as arches and walls during earthquakes and natural rock structures. Furthermore, The deterioration by atmospheric agents, bombing and seismic shaking damaged some of these structures.
Different arch configurations used in Shuri Castle in Okinawa Island were tested. The stability of the dynamic arch bridge of Iedonchi Royal Garden and Wakariji natural rock structure were investigated using the physical models (Tokashiki et al. 2007). Furthermore, dynamic limiting equilibrium methods (D-LEM) as well as numerical methods (i.e. conventional finite element method (FEM), discrete finite element method (Aydan 1998; Aydan et al. 1996; Mamaghani et al. 1989).