Editing Ponte Vecchio

{{Short description|Bridge in Florence, Italy}}
{{other uses}}
{{Infobox bridge
| name = Ponte Vecchio
| image = Ponte Vecchio from Ponte alle Grazie.jpg
| caption = 
| official_name = 
| carries = 
| crosses = [[Arno]]
| locale = [[Florence, Italy|Florence]], Italy
| maint = 
| id = 
| design = Closed-[[spandrel]] segmental stone [[arch bridge]]
| mainspan = {{convert|30|m}}
| length = 
| width = 
| height = 
| load = 
| clearance = 
| below = 
| traffic = 
| begin = 
| complete = 
| open = 
| closed = 
| toll = 
| coordinates = {{coord|43.76799|11.25316|format=dms|type:landmark_region:IT-FI|display=inline,title}}
}}

The '''Ponte Vecchio''' ({{IPA|it|ˈponte ˈvɛkkjo}};<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.dizionario.rai.it/poplemma.aspx?lid=29221&r=973 | title=Dizionario d'ortografia e di pronunzia | publisher=Rai | language=it |access-date=2010-02-24}}</ref> "Old Bridge")<ref name=pv>{{cite book | year=2007 | title=Ponte Vecchio | publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica}}</ref> is a [[Middle Ages|medieval]] stone closed-[[spandrel]] [[Circular segment|segmental]] [[arch bridge]] over the [[Arno]], in [[Florence, Italy|Florence]], Italy. The only bridge in Florence spared from destruction during [[World War II]], it is noted for the shops built along it; building shops on such bridges was once a common practice. Butchers, tanners, and farmers initially occupied the shops; the present tenants are jewellers, art dealers, and souvenir sellers.<ref name="dupre">{{cite book|last = Dupré, Judith|author-link = Judith Dupré| date =2017 |title = Bridges: A History of the World's Most Spectacular Spans | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=om5FDgAAQBAJ|format = Google Books| access-date = 2 March 2020 | location= New York| publisher = Hachette/Black Dog & Leventhal|isbn=978-0-316-47380-4}}</ref> The Ponte Vecchio's two neighbouring bridges are the [[Ponte Santa Trinita]] and the [[Ponte alle Grazie]].

The bridge connects Via Por Santa Maria (Lungarno degli Acciaiuoli and Lungarno degli Archibusieri) to Via de' Guicciardini (Borgo San Jacopo and Via de' Bardi).

The name was given to what was the oldest Florentine bridge when the [[Ponte alla Carraia]] was built, then called {{lang|it|Ponte Nuovo}} in contrast to the old one. Beyond the historical value, the bridge over time has played a central role in the city road system, starting from when it connected the Roman [[Florentia (Roman city)|Florentia]] with the [[Via Cassia]] Nova commissioned by the [[Hadrian|emperor Hadrian]] in 123 AD.

In contemporary times, despite being closed to vehicular traffic, the bridge is crossed by a considerable pedestrian flow generated both by its fame and by the fact that it connects places of high tourist interest on the two banks of the river: [[Piazza del Duomo, Florence|Piazza del Duomo]], [[Piazza della Signoria]] on one side with the area of [[Palazzo Pitti]] and [[Santo Spirito, Florence|Santo Spirito]] in the [[Oltrarno]].

The bridge appears in the list drawn up in 1901 by the General Directorate of Antiquities and Fine Arts, as a monumental building to be considered national artistic heritage.

==History and construction==
The bridge spans the Arno at its narrowest point<ref name="tci">Touring Club Italiano, ''Firenze e dintorni'' 1964:321</ref> where it is believed that a bridge was first built in [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] times,<ref name=arch>{{cite book | first=Guido | last=Zucconi | year= 1995| title=Florence: An Architectural Guide | publisher=Arsenale Editrice srl | location=San Giovanni Lupatoto, Vr, Italy | isbn=88-7743-147-4}}</ref> when the [[via Cassia]] crossed the river at this point.<ref name="tci"/> The Roman piers were of stone, the superstructure of wood.{{citation needed|date=March 2020}} The bridge first appears in a document of 996<ref name="tci"/> and was destroyed by a [[flood]] in 1117<ref name="dupre"/> and reconstructed in stone. In 1218 the Ponte alla Carraia, a wooden structure, was established nearby which led to it being referred to as "Ponte Nuovo" relative to the older (Vecchio) structure.<ref name="dupre"/> It was swept away again in 1333<ref name=arch/> except for two of its central piers, as noted by [[Giovanni Villani]] in his ''[[Nuova Cronica]]''.<ref>Bartlett, Kenneth R. (1992). ''The Civilization of the Italian Renaissance''. Toronto: D.C. Heath and Company. {{ISBN|0-669-20900-7}} (Paperback). Page 40.</ref> It was rebuilt in 1345.<ref>{{cite book | first=Michele G | last=Melaragno | year=1998 | title=Preliminary Design of Bridges for Architects and Engineers | publisher=Marcel Dekker | isbn=0-8247-0184-4 | pages=3}}</ref>

This location marks one of the earliest crossings of the Arno in Florence, possibly originating from Roman times or even before. Although floods have repeatedly damaged it, the current bridge has stood since approximately 1339-1345. For many years, the only older bridge in the city was the Rubaconte bridge, built nearly a century earlier. But after significant 19th-century modifications and its destruction in 1944, the Ponte Vecchio claimed its title as the oldest bridge in Florence.

[[Giorgio Vasari]] recorded the traditional view of his day that attributed its design to [[Taddeo Gaddi]]<ref name="pv" />— besides Giotto one of the few artistic names of the [[trecento]] still recalled two hundred years later. Modern historians present Neri di Fioravanti as a possible candidate as the builder.<ref name="tci" />

Sheltered in a little loggia at the central opening of the bridge is a weathered dedication stone, which once read ''Nel trentatrè dopo il mille-trecento, il ponte cadde, per diluvio dell' acque: poi dieci anni, come al Comun piacque, rifatto fu con questo adornamento''.<ref>Translated it would read, "In the thirty-third year following thirteen hundred, the bridge fell, from a watery flood: ten years later, at the pleasure of the Commune, it was rebuilt, with this adornment". (Touring Club Italiano, ''Firenze e dintorni'' 1964:321)</ref> The [[Torre dei Mannelli]] was built at the southeast corner of the bridge to defend it.

The bridge consists of three segmental arches: the main arch has a span of {{convert|30|m|ft|abbr=off|sp=us}}, and the two side arches each span {{convert|27|m|ft|abbr=off|sp=us}}. The rise of the arches is between 3.5 and 4.4 metres (11½ to 14½ feet), and the span-to-rise ratio is 5:1.<ref name="structurae">{{Structurae|id=20000472|title=Ponte Vecchio}}. Retrieved on 2007-02-16</ref> The shallow segmental arches, which require fewer piers than the [[semicircular]] arch traditionally used by Romans, enabled ease of access and navigation for animal-drawn carts.<ref name="dupre" /> Another notable design element is the large [[piazza]] at the center of the bridge that [[Leon Battista Alberti]] described as a prominent ornament in the city.<ref name="dupre" />

A stone with an inscription from [[Dante]] (''[[Paradiso (Dante)|Paradiso]]'' xvi. 140-7) records the spot at the entrance to the bridge where [[Buondelmonte de' Buondelmonti]] was murdered by the [[Amidei]] clan in 1215, which began the urban fighting of the [[Guelfs and Ghibellines]].

The bridge has always hosted shops and merchants <!--a source should be easily found, or this is no legend:(legend says this was originally due to a tax exemption),--> who displayed their goods on tables before their premises, after authorization by the [[Bargello]] (a sort of a lord mayor, a magistrate and a police authority).

== Later additions and changes ==
[[File:Lungarno degli archibugieri (corridoio vasariano) visto dal fiume 01.JPG|thumb|[[Vasari Corridor]] from [[Palazzo Vecchio]] to [[Palazzo Pitti]]]]
In order to connect the [[Palazzo Vecchio]] (Florence's town hall) with the [[Palazzo Pitti]], in 1565 [[Cosimo I de' Medici]] had [[Giorgio Vasari]] build the [[Vasari Corridor]], part of which runs above the Ponte Vecchio.<ref name="arch" />

To enhance the prestige and clean up the bridge, a decree was made in 1565 that excluded butchers from this bridge (only goldsmiths and jewellers are allowed) that is in effect to this day.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Haegen|first1=Anne Mueller von der|last2=Strasser|first2=Ruth F.|title=Art & Architecture: Tuscany|date=2013|publisher=H.F.Ullmann Publishing|location=Potsdam|isbn=978-3-8480-0321-1|page=216|chapter=Ponte Vecchio}}</ref> The association of butchers had monopolized the shops on the bridge since 1442.

The back shops (''retrobotteghe'') that may be seen from upriver were added in the seventeenth century.<ref name="tci" />

==20th century==
In 1900, to honour and mark the fourth century of the birth of the great Florentine sculptor and master goldsmith [[Benvenuto Cellini]], the leading goldsmiths of the bridge commissioned the Florentine sculptor, [[Raffaello Romanelli]], to create a bronze bust of Cellini to stand atop a fountain in the middle of the Eastern side of the bridge, where it stands to this day.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.raffaelloromanelli.com/en/about-us/founders/raffaello-romanelli/|title=Raffaello Romanelli |website=Galleria Romanelli|language=en-GB|access-date=2019-12-03}}</ref>
[[File:Scenes in Florence, Italy, 14 August 1944 TR2286.jpg|thumb|Damage shown shortly after liberation in August 1944 during World War II]]
During [[World War II]], the Ponte Vecchio was not destroyed by the German army during their retreat at the advance of the British [[Eighth Army (United Kingdom)|8th Army]] on 4 August 1944, unlike all the other bridges in Florence.<ref>''Encyclopædia Britannica'' online, '[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/469701/Ponte-Vecchio Ponte Vecchio]'.</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Brucker|first=Gene|title=Renaissance Florence|publisher=University of California Press|year=1983|isbn=0-520-04695-1|pages=8}}</ref> This was, according to many locals and tour guides, because of an express order by [[Hitler]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Rumour has it... Hitler and the Ponte Vecchio|url=http://www.timetravelturtle.com/2012/04/ponte-vecchio-florence-hitler/|access-date=20 November 2012|publisher=Time Travel Turtle}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=A history of the Ponte Vecchio, Florence|url=http://www.holiday-velvet.com/guide/2009/11/florence-ponte-vecchio-history/|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121219172808/http://www.holiday-velvet.com/guide/2009/11/florence-ponte-vecchio-history/|archive-date=19 December 2012|access-date=20 November 2012|publisher=Holiday Velvet}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=6 January 2008|title=Florence: Walk with the Medicis over the Ponte Vecchio plebs|newspaper=The Independent|location=London|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/europe/florence-walk-with-the-medicis-over-the-ponte-vecchio-plebs-768460.html|access-date=20 November 2012}}</ref> Access to the Ponte Vecchio was, however, obstructed by the destruction of the buildings at both ends of the bridge, which have since been rebuilt using a combination of original and modern designs.

The bridge was severely damaged in the [[1966 flood of the Arno]].<ref>[http://expo.khi.fi.it/gallery/the-flood-of-1966/impressions-of-the-city/ponte-vecchio Ponte Vecchio] at web site of the Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz</ref>

Between 2005 and 2006, 5,500 padlocks, known as [[love locks]], which were attached to the railings around the bust of Cellini, were removed by the city council. According to the council, the padlocks were aesthetically displeasing and damaged the bust and its railings. There is now a fine for attaching love locks to the bridge.<ref name='flor'>{{cite news | title = Florence tries to stamp out locks of love | date = 1 May 2006 | url = http://www.italymag.co.uk/italy/tuscany/florence-tries-stamp-out-locks-love | work = Italy Mag | access-date = 17 June 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120826222438/http://www.italymag.co.uk/italy/tuscany/florence-tries-stamp-out-locks-love | archive-date = 26 August 2012 | url-status = dead }}</ref>

An announcement in April 2024 stated that work would be completed on the bridge, including a cleaning, an upgrade of the replacement joints previously installed, strengthening of the stone and restoration of the footpath's stone.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://travel.nine.com.au/latest/italy-florence-ponte-vecchio-to-be-restored/ff1e9981-c25d-476b-9f5b-ad26be4cbb09|title=Florence's famed Ponte Vecchio to be restored to former glory with two-year makeover|date=15 April 2024|work=Nine Entertainment Co. Pty Limited|access-date=16 April 2024|quote=}}</ref>

==Panorama==

{{wide image|Panorama of the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy.jpg|1024px|align-cap=center|Panoramic view of the Ponte Vecchio, from the west.}}

==In art==
* The bridge is mentioned in the aria "[[O mio babbino caro]]" by [[Giacomo Puccini]].
* Wall [[mural]] in [[Grossi Florentino]], executed by students of [[Napier Waller]] under supervision
{{comparison_of_notable_bridges.svg}}

==See also==
{{Commons}}
* [[Krämerbrücke]]
* [[Pulteney Bridge]]
* [[Rialto Bridge]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==References==
* Chiarugi, Andrea, Foraboschi, Paolo, "Maintenance of the Ponte Vecchio historical bridge in Florence," in: ''Extending the Lifespan of Structures, Vol. 2,''  [[International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering|IABSE]] Symposium Report, San Francisco 1995, pp.&nbsp;1479–1484
* {{cite book | author=[[Judith Dupré|Dupré, Judith]] | title=Bridges: A History of the World's Most Spectacular Spans | publisher=Hachette/Black Dog & Leventhal Press | place=New York | year=2017 | isbn=978-0-316-47380-4}}
* {{cite journal | last=Flanigan | first=Theresa | title=The Ponte Vecchio and the Art of Urban Planning in Late Medieval Florence | journal=Gesta | volume=47 | year=2008 | pages=1–15 | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20648957}}
* {{cite book | author=[[Banister Fletcher|Fletcher, Banister]] | title=A History of Architecture | publisher=The Butterworth Group | place=London | year=1987 | isbn=0-408-01587-X | pages=756–757}}
* {{cite book | last=Graf | first=Bernhard | title=Bridges that Changed the World | publisher=Prestel | place=Munich | year=2002 | isbn=3-7913-2701-1 | pages=38–39}}

==External links==
* {{structurae|id=20000472|title=Ponte Vecchio}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070928024804/http://numberonestars.com/travel/ponte_vecchio_florence.htm "Ponte Vecchio, Florence"] on travel website Numberonestars.com (archived in 2007)
* [http://www.travel-to-florence.com/Ponte-Vecchio.html Short text about Ponte Vecchio] on private tourist website Travel-to-Florence.com

{{Florence landmarks}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vecchio}}
[[Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1345]]
[[Category:Deck arch bridges]]
[[Category:Bridges in Florence]]
[[Category:Jewellery districts]]
[[Category:Shopping districts and streets in Italy]]
[[Category:Stone bridges in Italy]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Florence]]
[[Category:Bridges completed in the 14th century]]
[[Category:Bridges with buildings]]
[[Category:Covered bridges in Italy]]