Ponte Vecchio

Ponte Vecchio, one of Florence's landmarks, stands at the Roman bridge of ancient Florentia. Over the centuries the bridge was rebuilt several times, also due to the numerous floods of the Arno; following one of these (1333) it was decided to build a new, more stable one (with three arches supported by just two pillars, with a series of masonry shops on both sides).

The bridge, built in 1345, probably designed by Taddeo Gaddi, is essentially what we can still admire today. The current goldsmiths' workshops - established in 1593 in place of the old butchers' and fishmongers' shops - make it the 'most precious bridge in the world'. The Corridoio Vasariano, (the suspended passageway allowing the Medici to move easily between Palazzo Vecchio and Palazzo Pitti, through the Uffizi) built by Giorgio Vasari in 1565 on commission of Cosimo I, runs right above these buildings. At the centre of the bridge you can admire the monument to Benvenuto Cellini (Raffaello Romanelli, 1900) and the remains of a 14th-century sundial. In August 1944, during the Nazi retreat, this was the only Florentine bridge that remained intact. The terrible flood of 1966, while causing serious damage, did not compromise its structure.

The views you can enjoy from here are splendid: over the Arno and its bridges, over the city, but also over the surrounding hills