The inner geography of hill-top towns. A discussion on the effects of altimetry on configuration

Space syntax as a theory and methodology is widely applied and appreciated for its capability of extracting relevant cognitive data and information of generative processes out of the spatial layout of urban settlements. Nonetheless, the different operational techniques introduced so far share the prevailing (if not exclusive) interest towards the planimetric consistency of the urban settlements, taking for granted the irrelevance of orography, as implicitly assumed as not effective and hence negligible. Here altimetry is taken into play, discussing its role on configuration as well as on the distribution of centrality. I propose a new configurational technique, suitable for appraising the orographic features of the grid, then presenting the results of its test on several case studies corresponding to steep urban settlements. The findings imply that also the altimetric features of a settlement are implicitly enclosed within the grid configuration, internalized within its variables. Even more, space syntax is recognized suitable for describing the way an urban settlement fits the specific orographic condition of the site, that’s to say the way its use is actually made possible in the local geographic context.