Riconnettere presente e passato: la ricostruzione virtuale delle cucine del monastero dei Benedettini a Catania

The experimentation conducted on the kitchens of the Benedictine Monastery in Catania (now the Museo della Fabbrica of the University of Catania) was aimed at the virtual reconstruction of certain features of the monastery that have largely been erased by the numerous transformations it has undergone over the centuries. It was an exercise in reconnecting the present and the past through critical observation, historical investigation, surveying and 3D modelling. Traces of the past were identified through the analytical study of source material (iconographic collections, bibliographic, historical maps, and archive documents) and architectural surveying, in order to formulate detailed hypotheses covering geometry, shape, architecture and construction techniques. The methodology is based on the London Charter and Seville Principles regarding 3D reconstructions, with particular reference to scientific transparency and historical rigour, in order to clearly indicate the data sources underlying any choice or hypothesis (paradata)