Structural analysis of the baroque parish church of Zsámbék

Abstract

On the walls and vaults of the Roman Catholic Parish Church of Zsámbék cracks have long been observed. According to the parishioners, the crack widths have widened recently and new cracks have also appeared. This may have happened due to the increased traffic of the road beside the church. In this paper we report on the structural analysis, including the investigation of vibrations induced by the traffic in the structural elements. We found that the weakness of the structural system of that age results from uneven settlement of the foundations due to the soil strata and constructional errors from the previous restorations. As the result of our analysis we recommended possible solutions for restoring the structural integrity of the church building.