The Construction of an Informative 3D Model for the Monitoring of City Heritage Risk

The issue of loss of heritage, whether caused by natural disasters or by human impact, has always involved challenges to the human possibilities and capabilities of safeguarding the memory and cultural identity that landscapes, cities, and architectures represent for our history. The chapter shows some output of an international research project, co-financed by the Italian Agency for Cooperation and Development and coordinated by the University of Pavia, aimed to develop new strategies for the documentation, safeguarding and monitoring of a Cultural Heritage at risk. The goal is to define a specific methodological approach, from three-dimensional metric documentation to diagnostic investigation, census, and virtual reconstruction of the historical centre of the city of Bethlehem. Through the definition of realitybased models and 3D GIS platforms, the research aims to provide a replicable method on historicised urban context for the control and prevention of seismic risk and the maintenance of the historic image through its digital twin.