Digital Representation of Urban Changes: Fragments of the Medieval Palermo

Abstract

In June 2015, the serial heritage site “Arab-Norman Palermo and the Cathedral Churches of Cefalù and Monreale” was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Maredolce Castle and the Scibene Palace, owing to the loss of original elements or due to problems of conservation and function, once resolved, cannot be part of the itinerary. This text proposes a new reading of the configuration of the sites of the monuments analysed. It looks at important moments in their history and represents the modifications made over time. A digital model of the current situation was developed using information assumed from the Carta Tecnica Comunale (Municipal Technical Map). This document served as a starting point for a work in reverse aimed at constructing past configurations. The comparison between the simplified 3D model and the collection of historic iconographic documents permits a simultaneous visualisation of the morphological, dimensional and perceptive transformations of built space.