The Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge) seen from the Ponte alle Grazie
Above the shops runs the Corridoio Vasariano (Vasari Corridor)
Florence, October 2013
“This charmingly simple bridge was built in 1345 to replace an earlier bridge swept away by flood. Its shops first housed butchers, then grocers, blacksmiths, and other merchants. But in 1593 the Medici grand duke Ferdinand I (1549–1609), whose private corridor linking the Medici palace (Palazzo Pitti) with the Medici offices (the Uffizi) crossed the bridge atop the shops, decided that all this plebeian commerce under his feet was unseemly. So he threw out the butchers and blacksmiths and installed 41 goldsmiths and eight jewelers. The bridge has been devoted solely to these two trades ever since.” (Ponte Vecchio, Fodor's Travel)
3 comments:
Interesting bridge. I'm not used to seeing a bridge with shops on it.
One day...
What a sight, what a story!
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