Prigioni del corpo e dell'anima. Le architetture carcerarie storiche in Sardegna e il caso di San Sebastiano a Sassari = Prisons of the body, prisons of the soul. Sardinian historic architecture of detention and the case-study of San Sebastiano in Sassari

The historical prison system in Sardinia is unique in its richness and complexity. It is made up of four large urban complexes, built in the 19th century based upon the most innovative construction models of the time. Today, the most of these buildings are disused, and they are: the Buoncammino prison in Cagliari, the San Sebastiano prison in Sassari, the prison of Oristano and 'La Rotonda' prison in Tempio Pausania. This research analyses possible reuses for these architectures, including the recognition of urban, typological and architectural value. The complexity of such structures at both the macro and micro level calls for a multi-disciplinary, analytical and theoretical approach. It arises from the dialectical comparison between the architect-restorer and the architect-designer, following a methodology that measures, grafts and composes conceptual thought allowing such historical architectures to have a contemporary function. This paper specifically illustrates the results about the ex San Sebastiano prison in Sassari, through the 'reconstruction' of the relationship of mutual dependence between Architecture and the City.