CONSTRUCTIONAL CHANGES IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF STAINT PETERSBURG IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE XIX CENTURY

The article discusses the changes that have occurred in the architectural and construction practice of Russia in the first half of the XIX century. New building materials: cast iron, iron, facing bricks, hydraulic binders are tested and introduced. Beam system is gradually replacing the vaulted-beam structural system of residential buildings. During this period, the first examples of the supporting frame in a building made of cast-iron columns appeared. This fundamentally changed the possibilities of architecture in the following decades. In the middle of the 19th century, wooden farms were replaced with iron, more durable and fireproof. The creation of complex large-span structures from new materials has led to the development of methods for their calculation, the emergence of a new specialty in building design - structural engineers. Strengthening the brickwork of the walls, reinforcing it with iron elements, made it possible to increase the height of mass residential buildings to 4–5 floors. Typical for the seventeenth century, the stairs on the brick vaults gradually begin to do on the metal braids. New facade elements, such as balconies, loggias, peaks, bay windows, began to be widely used. Lattices and brackets of balconies, roof fencing, canopies over entrances, window lattices were made of cast iron. The use of metal jumpers made it possible to expand the openings of the first floor of buildings, turning windows into shop windows. The introduction of metal structures in construction practice gradually changed the architecture of the facades, which ultimately led to a change in the appearance of buildings and architectural and artistic style. The article provides generalizations and conclusions on the research conducted by the author, based on extensive bibliographic and archival materials, building survey documents, design and restoration drawings, made by design workshops in St. Petersburg.