ABSTRACT
Reinforced-brick shell structures are mainly known through the extraordinary work of the Uruguayan engineer Eladio Dieste. However, other remarkable examples of shells in reinforced masonry were being built during Dieste's development of the technique or even before. The most well-known individual in the field of reinforced-brick shell architecture is the Uruguayan engineer Dieste. Dieste's contribution to the Berlingieri House by Antoni Bonet led to what is acknowledged by many historians to be the first reinforced-brick vaults. The presentation of the works and background of the engineers Dieste, Guillermo Gonzalez Zuleta and Ildefonso Sanchez del Rio Pison showed three different approaches to reinforced brick architecture. The idea came as a solution to resist the tensile stresses and bending moments that masonry vaults cannot withstand. Although pioneering, his architecture was rooted in tradition and was formulated in response to its context, within strong economic constraints.
