Ponte Vecchio
Listed under Monuments & Landmarks in Florence, Italy.
Europe's oldest stone, open-spandrel, segmented arch bridge, it was originally made from wood until 1345. Stretching over the Arno River, it has three arch segments, and it is rumoured that the word bankruptcy originated here - a merchant had his table ("banco") broken ("rotto") by soldiers if he couldn't pay. In 1564, Cosimo I de Medici had Giorgio Vasari built the renowned corridor on top, with butchers and grocers replaced by gold merchants in 1952. It is the only Florentine bridge not destroyed by the Nazis, on the command of Adolf Hitler.
Written by 
George Monkhouse.
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