The scientific and technological advancement obtained by the SyMBoL “Sustainable Management of heritage Buildings in a Long-term perspective” project has taken steps towards to understand the appropriate environmental conditions for historical buildings and specifically for the Norwegian wooden medieval stave churches called “Stavkirker” in time of climate change, mass tourism and issues connected with the energy use.

The project has provided the necessary evidence-based data to understand what the circumstances are - in term of use and climate conditions - that can induce mechanical decay on pine wood, a material very present in the stave churches in Norway.

Such knowledge has been obtained

1. through experiments in the lab, studying the accumulation of climate-induced mechanical damage in wooden samples mimicking original elements, through the calibration of no-destructive technique with the fracture propagation at specific climate conditions;

2. monitoring campaigns in the stave churches, and collection of metadata from visitors presence and management of the indoor microclimate;

3. numerical simulation, reproducing mechanical properties of pine wooden elements and/or water vapour uptake/release and related internal stresses.

The results are beneficial for local authorities, conservators, and decision makers to understand hazards, to prioritize conservation treatments for painted wood structure, and to be effective in planning indoor climate management. Last but not least, the results are beneficial also for the general public to disseminate to them what may be the best strategies for a safer preservation of stave churches in particular and of historic buildings in general.