Apart from being the most romantic bridge in Italy, this bridge is really the oldest in Florence.
Still today on the bridge there are goldsmiths and jewelers who continue the old tradition (since 1593).
The first bridge was built in the Romanesque period but it was completely rebuilt in 1345.
Taddeo Gaddi is the architect who planned the new bridge with 3 arches.
In 1565 Vasari designed the famous Vasari Corridor that passes on the east side of the bridge and links Palazzo Vecchio with Palazzo Pitti, open to tourists these days.
In 1939 Mussolini and Hitler visited the Corridor and the Old Bridge,
maybe it is thank to this visit that the bridge was not destroyed during the second world war!
Today the bridge is very popular also for a new tendency: in the middle of the bridge there is a Cellini's statue
protected by a railing where Lovers coming from all over the world lock their padlocks.
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