FLORENCE: A secret passageway built 500 years ago to allow the ruling Medici family to pass through the Italian city of Florence unhindered reopens to the public on Saturday after a 10-million-euro restoration.

The Vasari Corridor, which is more than 700 metres (nearly half a mile) long and runs above the famous Ponte Vecchio, has been closed for eight years.

Designed in 1565 by Giorgio Vasari, a commission by Duke Cosimo I to mark his son’s wedding, the corridor begins at what is now the Uffizi Galleries and ends up in the Pitti Palace, across the Arno river.

Its 73 windows offer unrivalled views over the city centre, a Unesco World Heritage site, and will now finally be accessible to the general public.

It had since the 1970s held the large collection of the Uffizi’s self-portraits, but was closed in 2016 to allow for upgrades to meet modern safety standards.

“Now restored to its original simplicity, the corridor presents itself to visitors as a plain `aerial tunnel’,” the Uffizi said in a statement on Friday.

It passes above the heart of the city, “just as it appeared when the Florentine rulers used it for quick, safe, and uninterrupted passage between their residence and the seat of government”.

The works, which began in 2022, include new disability access, emergency exits, energy-efficient LED lighting and video surveillance.

“After an eight-year wait, the reopening of the Vasari Corridor returns a masterpiece within a masterpiece to Florence and Italy,” Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli said.

Published in Dawn, December 21st, 2024