ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the comparison of the seismic behaviour of facades of Mexican colonial churches with and without bell towers in order to understand better the role of them in the seismic behaviour of the facades. Ancient masonry structures like churches built in Mexico during the colonial period, between the 16th and 18th centuries, are particularly vulnerable to dynamic actions, with a special focus on seismic action. The fagade is composed by the main wall, which is connected with the towers and the frontispiece. The fagade has generally two openings: the main door and a window for illuminate the chorus, which can be rectangular or circular. The rigid element method is a simplified method for the analysis of masonry structures, which consider it as an assemblage of rigid elements and springs, allowing fast non-linear dynamic analysis of this kind of structure.
