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The paper is focused on the historical-architectural evolution and material-technical qualification of polychrome majolica domes that were built between the 17th and 19th centuries in Apulian religious buildings. In particular, the cultural context in which this solution spread throughout the Mediterranean area is identified. Moreover, the case history of construction and decorative techniques that are distinctive of the regional territory is discussed in terms of underlying structure, installation of elements and surface colours. The study is then detailed on the Church of Santa Maria della Vetrana in Castellana Grotte (BA), for which the morpho-typological survey and mapping of the decay state are presented, based on the use of terrestrial and aerial digital photogrammetry. Finally, based on the identification of the main pathologies from both direct and indirect alteration factors, the most appropriate conservation and maintenance interventions are outlined, with specific focus on repair and integration of the majolica tiles, according to principles of high compatibility and low intrusiveness for a solution meeting artisan tradition and technical practice.

[EN] The digitalization of the historical-architectural heritage for virtual reality (VR) applications is crucial within the contemporary scientific and technical debate for several aspects. In fact, beyond the exploration for education and entertainment purposes, the employment of three-dimensional (3D) reality-based and computer-based models and environments seems to be very promising for performance assessment and risk management as well. Particularly, in order to develop and validate smart, low-cost and user-friendly tools, which might apply even in cases of limited time and budget, the present paper is going to propose a methodological workflow based on thematic virtual tours of 360° scenes, which integrate a variety of informative contents and digital products as external hotspots/switches. The VR tours, where 3D models might play a key role for an accurate representation of relevant parts and/or analytical elaboration of further data, are conceived as flexible and scalable solutions, supporting users, technicians and authorities through remote access, diagnosis of the state of conservation and communication of safety measures. The application of the proposed methods and techniques to a representative case study, the Norman-Swabian Castle of Gioia del Colle (Ba), South Italy, is presented in order to illustrate the achievable results and highlight the benefit of innovative “digital” solutions for data collection, storage and communication, compared to the traditional “analogical” practices. In detail, a Web-GIS platform, developed within a previous research project, is integrated with direct links to three thematic virtual tours that provide added contents for inclusive dissemination (timeline schemes, aerial views, 3D sculptural and architectural details), performance assessment (diagnostic reports, decay maps, 3D reconstructions of technical components) and risk management (exit signs, help instructions, warnings). Thus, the VR tours, while documenting realistically the state of the site, might act as host environments of digital products, at increasing complexity, all displayed according to an intuitive and accessible communication approach.Highlights:• Virtual tours of 360° scenes, linking thematic digital contents, are proposed as intuitive and versatile tools for smart documentation, conservation and protection of historical buildings.• The role of 3D reality-based and computer-based models is discussed toward their integration and correlation within thematic virtual tours of 360° scenes.• The potential of immersive environments for sharing knowledge about conservation issues and training users on safety measures in historic buildings is underlined., [ES] La digitalización del patrimonio histórico-arquitectónico en aplicaciones de realidad virtual (RV) es crucial dentro del actual panorama científico-técnico por varias razones. De hecho, más allá de su exploración con meros fines educativos y de entretenimiento, el empleo de modelos tridimensionales (3D) basados en la realidad y entornos computacionales se muestran igualmente como herramientas muy atractivas en la evaluación del desempeño y la gestión de riesgos. Sobre todo, con el fin de desarrollar y validar herramientas inteligentes, de bajo costo y de fácil empleo, que puedan aplicarse incluso en casos con disponibilidad temporal o presupuesto limitado. El presente trabajo propone un proceso metodológico basado en los desarrollos de recorridos virtuales temáticos de escenas en 360°, que integran una variedad de contenidos informativos y productos digitales como conexiones externas/interruptores. Los recorridos de RV, donde los modelos 3D pueden jugar un papel clave para la representación precisa y/o el análisis de los datos más a fondo, se conciben como soluciones flexibles y escalables, que apoyan a los usuarios, técnicos y autoridades a lo largo de la divulgación pública, el diagnóstico del estado de conservación y la comunicación de las medidas de seguridad que sea necesario adoptar para la conservación integral del patrimonio histórico-arquitectónico. Con el fin de ilustrar los resultados alcanzables mediante la metodología propuesta y resaltar el beneficio de la innovación de soluciones “digitales” en la captura, el almacenamiento y la presentación de datos, en comparación con las prácticas “analógicas” tradicionales, estas técnicas y métodos se aplican a un caso representativo de estudio, el castillo normando-suabo de Gioia del Colle (Ba), sito en el sur de Italia. Concretamente, una plataforma Web-GIS, que se encuentra desarrollada dentro de un proyecto de investigación anterior, integra enlaces directos a tres recorridos virtuales que brindan contenidos para la divulgación inclusiva (esquemas de línea de tiempo, vistas aéreas, detalles arquitectónicos y escultóricos en 3D), evaluación del desempeño (informes de diagnóstico, mapas de descomposición, reconstrucciones 3D de componentes técnicos) y gestión de riesgos (señales de salida, instrucciones de ayuda y advertencias). Por lo tanto, los recorridos de RV, si bien documentan de manera realista el lugar, pueden actuar como entornos de productos digitales, con una creciente complejidad, todos ellos representados de acuerdo a un enfoque de comunicación intuitivo y accesible.