Structural Analysis of the Bell Tower of the Basilica De La Merced of Lima

Abstract

The Bell Tower of the Basilica de la Merced de Lima is a monument with its own personality in itself, was built by master masonry Alonso de Morales as contract signed May 12, 1589 whose original is in the General File Nation of Peru. Until now has been repaired several times due to damage to large earthquakes that destroyed the city of Lima in more than one occasion. The Bell Tower of the Basilica de la Merced de Lima is the construction of unreinforced brick masonry higher and that has continued for over four centuries in the same location and is without doubt one of the famous monuments of the city of Lima. For structural analysis, the monument was modeled and analyzed by finite element method, models were developed to adjust and show impressive results and consistent with the records of damage were made in the year 2005 date when the monument was established structurally. An important historical record supports the technical scope of the investigation. Interesting comments on its formidable seismic capacity, and their significant contributions in knowledge of construction techniques of the builders of the sixteenth century in Lima, reveal a building that surprises with its apparent simplicity but it saves a lot of knowledge about engineering techniques applied to the great monuments that have survived from the years in which Lima was the largest metropolis in South America.