The process of historical building conservation includes the repair of mortars eroded due to material and environmental factors. Identification of old mortar constituents is necessary to enable duplicating the material. Information on the binder and aggregate types and contents can be obtained from microscopic observation used in combination with instrumental methods. This paper presents the results of microstructure and mineral composition tests of mortars collected from the walls of thirteenth century buildings. A combination of techniques was used, which included X-ray diffraction, transmitted light optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy with micro-area elemental composition analysis. The test results revealed porous lime and sand mortars with a binder-aggregate ratio often beyond the commonly adopted values. The mortars contained sand grains of up to 0.5 mm and larger pieces of limestone, flint, feldspar and brick. Transmitted light optical microscopy and scanning microscopy were found to be essential techniques for mortar characterization in existing buildings and structures.
The presence of art in historic representative buildings is widespread and common. It is not surprising, therefore, that it is a frequent tool used in the transformation processes of these structures. A surprise, however, may be a situation where, instead of the art from the period of the creation of a given monument, the contemporary, multimedia or engaging the viewer cultural activities occur. Therefore, the key questions are the role of such forms of intervention in the historical representative interiors and the possibility of co-existing old and new. It is not without significance for objects under conservator’s protection that there are special requirements that the intervention must fulfill to be installed. The subject of considerations in this work are case studies of the application of contemporary multimedia art in the representative spaces of historical objects. The purpose of the article is to examine types of such artistic interventions resulting from the relationship between a work of art and exhibition space and their mutual influence.
In the article, the authors presented the results of microbiological air quality studies in selected buildings with additional thermal insulation applied from the inside using a silicate and lime system, as well as the results of a survey study concerning the comfort of use of said buildings. The microbiological air quality studies, conducted in buildings immediately prior to and after the application of additional thermal insulation using silicate and lime sheets, demonstrated a significant decrease in the number of mould spores in interior spaces. This was also reflected in the results of a survey study. The survey study was conducted with users of public and commercial buildings and municipal housing buildings in Krakow. Thanks to the additional insulation applied from inside using the silicate and lime system, all of the utilitarian parameters of internal spaces had improved. The most significant changes concerned parameters like comfort of use, the aesthetic of the spaces and breathing comfort. According to experts, the silicate and lime system was also rated highly in terms of the analysed parameters.
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