Investigation and analysis of groundwater-derived damage to the Shahe ancient bridge site in Xi’an, China

Heritage Science

Jing Cao¹  Juanli Wang¹  Bingjie Mai¹  Yuhu Li¹  Hua Chen² 

[1] Engineering Research Center of Historical and Cultural Heritage Protection, Ministry of Education, Shaanxi Normal University, 710069, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China;Jingzhou Preservation Center of Cultural Relics, 434020, Jingzhou, Hubei, China;

关键词: Geotechnical investigation;    Groundwater;    Damage analysis;    Earthen cultural ruins;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s40494-021-00573-6

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

Earthen cultural ruins and their subsurface environments act as carriers or support for aboveground cultural heritage artefacts, and groundwater has been identified as the most important factor accelerating the destruction of ruins. In this paper, a wooden structure on the site of the Xianyang Shahe ancient bridge is taken as the research object. Through geotechnical surveys and site sample analyses, the relationship between the environment and cause of damage at the site is explored. Fluctuations in groundwater level are found to affect the movement of water and salt, thereby accelerating deterioration and allowing microbes and other soil inhabitants and plants to erode the ruins. Furthermore, strong correlations are revealed between the stratigraphy of the area and both ruin status and sample analysis results. Geotechnical investigation data are used to predict the effects of various damaging factors on long-term preservation and the underlying mechanisms and to propose feasible, long-term countermeasures for preservation studies.

【 授权许可】

CC BY