The 17 contrade

The Legend of la BEFANA

Passion of Christ on Palm Sunday

The Grassina Passion Play

Gothic Dream

The Race or Bravio of St. Reparata

Wish upon a star

Halloween

Bacco Artigiano at Rufina

And who was St. Zenobius?

A home from home through the year

More Tuscan history

The Scottish market

Florence’s oldest bridge

Ponte Vecchio
[Susan Glasspool]

The Ponte Vecchio you can see today is extremely ancient. Built with stone fore-starlings and paved in wood, it was the first bridge to be constructed in Florence during the time of the Roman Legion, at the lowest fordable point across the Arno.
It was completely rebuilt in stone in 1177 and paved in brick. Note the plaque on the right, on the Por Santa Maria side of the bridge, recalling the destruction of the bridge in the disastrous flood of 1333. It was on this occasion that the waters swept away the Roman statue of Mars that decorated the bridge, never to be found again.
The bridge was reconstructed twelve years later with the addition of the shops. The new Ponte Vecchio cost 70.000 florins to build and the 48 shops, butcher’s, grocer’s, smith’s and cobbler’s shops, had to contribute 600 florins towards the cost.They were replaced by the gold and silversmiths we see today in 1591.




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