Ponte Vecchio, Firenze by shutterbugs
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Description
The Ponte Vecchio (Italian for "Old Bridge") is a Medieval bridge that crosses the Arno River in Florence, Italy. The oldest written record we have of it dates back to 996 A.D. Since then, it has undergone various reconstructions. The version we can see here dates back prior to the rule of the Medici, ca. 1565 A.D. Historically, the bridge has been lined with various shops. Butchers initially occupied them, but the present tenants are jewelers, art dealers and souvenir sellers. Ponte Vecchio has been described as Europe's oldest wholly-stone, closed-spandrel segmental arch bridge.
It is said that the economic concept of bankruptcy originated here: when a merchant could not pay his debts, the table on which he sold his wares (the "banco") was physically broken ("rotto") by soldiers, and this practice was called "bancorotto" (broken table; possibly it can come from "banca rotta" which means "broken bank"). Not having a table anymore, the merchant was not able to sell anything.
During World War II, the Ponte Vecchio was not destroyed by Germans during their retreat on August 4, 1944, unlike all other bridges in Florence. This was allegedly because of an express order by Hitler. Access to Ponte Vecchio was, however, obstructed by the destruction of the buildings at both ends. Fortunately, the Allies didn't bomb the bridge either, so we can enjoy it today as the people of Florence did some 500 years ago.
The story behind this shot. Although I'd been to Florence before, on this occasion, I only had one full day to take pictures. It was raining and overcast while I was there, but just as I worked my way down to the Uffizi, the clouds parted for about an hour and the day was saved. Thank the gods of photography! To see what it looked like an hour earlier, look at the capture preceding this one. It stands as proof that bad weather isn't always "bad."
Comments (20)
marybelgium
Simply beautiful ! fantastic compo !
tennesseecowgirl
Interesting to read about, great photo as well.
artaddict2
Great shot of this magnificent and old bridge, I bought my girlfriend a gold charm and chain on this bridge. very interesting information about the Bankruptcy. Excellent!
Doriutz
Fantastic colors and shot :)
flora-crassella
...diese Ansicht ist wunderschön! Wieder toll gemacht!!!
emmecielle
Fantastic image! :)
MistyLaraCarrara
It has charm.
SapUS59
fantastic image and history, thanks for sharing !!
mark.spooner
Nice capture.
danob
Great trio of shots again but this has to be my fav for the day.. Amazing history and well written narrative.
tetsu-pino
Excellent capture!!
Fidelity2
This is an excellent image.
Meowgli
excellent pov
durleybeachbum
Beautiful shot and great info!
CavalierLady
Fantastic color, light and clarity!!! Superb image and fascinating information! Really a great shot!!!
Richardphotos
very impressive capture of a very unique bridge
MrsRatbag
Wonderful capture!
junge1
A wonderful shot. I love the reflections on the water. I appreciate the extensive and interesting background information, Sig...
DukeNukem2005
Very beautiful and very nice image.
KarmaSong
Extraordinary vista, what a superb bridge I'd heard of but never actually saw with such incredible clarity and details. Excellent photography, as always!