The story of this place
Spanning the Arno at its narrowest point, the Ponte Vecchio ('Old Bridge') was rebuilt in 1345 after a flood and is famous for the shops built along it. Originally butchers and tanners, they were evicted in 1593 by Grand Duke Ferdinand I—repelled by the stench—and replaced with goldsmiths and jewellers, a trade that continues today. Above the shops runs the Vasari Corridor, a private elevated passage the Medici used to cross the city unseen. In August 1944, retreating German forces dynamited every bridge in Florence to slow the Allied advance—but spared the Ponte Vecchio, reportedly on Hitler's direct order, instead blocking its approaches by demolishing the medieval buildings at each end.