277
S.Th. Rassia and P.M. Pardalos (eds.), Sustainable Environmental Design
in Architecture: Impacts on Health, Springer Optimization and Its Applications 56,
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4419-0745-5_17, © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2012
Abstract This chapter summarizes the restoration–preservation of two large marble
statues – those of Athena and Apollo – which decorate for the last 130 years the
forefront of the main building of the Academy of Athens. Each statue rests atop a
13.65-m tall multi-drum marble column. Our study initially focuses on the restora-
tion of the marble surfaces of the statues and their bases due to atmospheric pollution
which has increased significantly during the last 20 years. Subsequently, the chapter
presents the fundamental elements of the seismic response analysis and protection
of the statue-multi-drum column system.
17.1 Introduction
During recent years, there has been increasing interest for the restoration and
preservation of monuments that reflect the cultural heritage of the European Union
which have suffered from environmental hazards (i.e., earthquakes, floods, fire)
including environmental pollution. Modern techniques/technologies have been
developed towards this direction which involve the use of materials compatible with
the monuments’ structural characteristics (i.e., material, construction type and age,
vulnerability, etc.), either from ancient or more recent times.
The period of architectural neoclassicism coincides historically with the estab-
lishment of the Greek State during the second half of the nineteenth century.
Architectural neoclassicism was widely adopted in Athens and thereafter in other
A. Kounadis (*)
Academy of Athens, Athens, Greece
e-mail: kounadis@bioacademy.gr
N. Makris
Structures and Applied Mechanics, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
e-mail: nmakris@upatras.gr
Chapter 17
Restoration–Preservation in an Urban
Environment and Seismic Stability
of the Statues of Athena and Apollo Along
the Forefront of the Academy of Athens
Antonios Kounadis and Nikolaos Makris