Experimental study on the seismic performance of a double-span traditional timber frame

•In analyzing timber frames with semi-rigid joints, the P–Δ effect should be included.•The pulling-out failure for timber dovetail joints is observed.•The timber frames display good ductility.•The timber frames own good energy dissipation capacity.•The timber frames develop a stable hysteretic loop.

Based on the prototype of a timber palace built during the Chinese Song Dynasty with inverted-trapezoid sectioned dovetail (ITSD) mortise–tenon joints, three 1:4 scaled specimens were fabricated and tested subjected to cyclic lateral loadings. Efforts have been made to study the characteristics of the timber frame, such as the failure mode, the hysteretic and envelope curves, the strength and the stiffness degradation, and the energy dissipation. Besides, the influence of P–Δ effect on the analytical results of timber frames was discussed in detail. Furthermore, the moment–rotation relationship for the ITSD mortise–tenon joints was presented and validated.