The Role of Cloisters in Historical Cities
Abstract
Over the centuries religious architecture had a significant role in social and cultural life of people. In the past sacred architectures with their silent spaces were symbolic sites were the “voice” of God was invoked by religious who dedicated most of their life to prayer and spiritual readings.
Among them, the cloisters, with their typical architectural conformation of open-air space protected by galleries or corridors, enriched by fountains and gardens had a relevant role also for their restorativeness' capability. They were used as healing places where body, mind and spirit could benefit from the surrounding environment.
Nowadays they are still attended by men of faith, pilgrims and religious believers but also, simply, by people in searching of quietness. Their sight on the sky, the greenery and the water, and their cultural elements still affects strongly the physiological and emotional restoration process of the people and, in overcrowded cities where green areas misses, they can represent a new resource. Recent studies highlighted the possibility to use them as pockets of quiet. The paper describes their diffusion in the urban tissue of some cities in Campania and their main characteristics.
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