Morning peak hour traffic crossing the River Arno on bridges beyond the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Tuscany, Italy
Florence, Tuscany, Italy: the south east side of the Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge), reflected in the River Arno, with the bridges beyond congested with morning rush hour traffic. A bridge has stood on the site of the Ponte Vecchio probably since Roman times. It was rebuilt twice before 1300 and then transformed in 1345 into the first segmental arch bridge built in the west. With fewer piers than the Roman semi-circular-arch design, it offered less obstruction to boats. The transformation also saw shops created along the bridge's flanks. They were rented to artisans and merchants and subsequently sold to private owners. Because owners were not allowed to build on the pavement, the buildings were extended over the river, held up by wooden stakes or brackets. In the 1400s, the bridge was populated by a throng of grocers, butchers and fishmongers. Towards the end of the 1500s, the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Ferdinando I, evicted these noisy and smelly traders and installed goldsmiths and silversmiths instead. The bridge is still home to many shops selling both new and antique jewellery. The row of windows across the top of the bridge, above the public walkway, light the Vasari Corridor, begun in 1564 by Giorgio Vasari on the orders of Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici to link the Pitti Palace, his recently-acquired residence on the Arno’s south west bank, with the Palazzo Vecchio, his former official seat in Piazza della Signoria. The enclosed 1 km-long passageway, now lined with artworks, is also accessed from the world-famous Uffizi Gallery, which originally served as ground floor Uffizi (offices) for magistrates overseeing Florentine production and trade, with its first floor housing administrative offices and workshops manufacturing precious objects.
Size: 4256px × 2832px
Location: Ponte Vecchio, Florence, Tuscany, Italy
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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