Abstract:The brick-vault hall is a unique architectural heritage type in China, which has high historical, artistic, and scientific value. In order to better conserve and restore the architectural heritage, taking the brick-vault hall of Kaiyuan Temple in Suzhou in Ming Dynasty as a typical example, the hall is accurately surveyed, and its space, form, and structure are analyzed. The material strength of brick masonry is achieved by a nondestructive testing method. Based on the modeling and simulation with finite element software, the structural performance of the architectural heritage under static load is calculated. The results show that the exterior form of the brick-vault hall of Kaiyuan Temple basically conforms to the characteristics of the damu zuo (structural carpentry) of the official architecture in Ming Dynasty. Under the static load, the tensile stress at the top of the staircase on the first floor, the sill wall under each arch window, and the top of each arch has exceeded the tensile strength of brick masonry materials, which is consistent with the current damage. These results could contribute to the conservation strategies for buildings of this type.