“Piazza della Repubblica” is the largest square in Livorno and has a secret: it is a very wide bridge. Around 1840 the “Fosso Reale” was provided with a vaulted covering over 220 meter long, which gave the square the popular name of “Voltone” (big vault).
The square is on the east-west axis going from the port to the railway station and faces, on its north side, the “Fortezza Nuova”.
On the square were erected two statues of two Grand Dukes of Tuscany: Ferdinando III by Francesco Pozzi and Leopold II by Paolo Emilio Demi. The last statue was damaged during the unrest of 1849 and replaced with a copy by Emilio Santarelli in 1855. The damaged statue was kept in storage for almost a century and is now sadly stranded in the middle of “Piazza XX Settembre”.
Formerly known as square of the Grand Dukes, changed its name in “Piazza Carlo Alberto” to honor Carlo Alberto of Savoy. In 1946, after the fall of the monarchy, the square received its current name.See also: The Austrians Are Coming - Shall We Dance? - Balliamo? - Fanfara dei Carabinieri - Forlorn Grand Duke
I find the contrast of the sleek boats against the old architecture very interesting.
ReplyDeleteWonderful pictures.
Sunny :)
The subject of a couple of these photos look familiar...but I had no idea this was "a very wide bridge." Fascinating history.
ReplyDeleteI see the light at the end of the tunnel . . . .
ReplyDeleteI think it was great ingenuity to build a square over a river.
ReplyDeleteAnother really well done comparison of Now & Then. Is the hill in the distance of the old photo still there? I think I see it with a huge white structure on it??
ReplyDeleteWide bridge indeed! The first photo is terrific, and I like the idea of comparing modern and old pictures.
ReplyDeleteNot a bad place for a Grand Duke to hang around. I also like the first shot, it captures the contrasts that I like so much about Italy.
ReplyDeleteI loved the first shot! So interesting post dear friend!
ReplyDeleteLéia
It is a very wide bridge. I've never seen anything like it. The first picture is beautiful. I like the way the bridge and the boats are reflected in the water.
ReplyDeleteA splendid quartet. It really helps when you show a historic shot and a contemporary image of the same place from the same basic angle. Thank you.
ReplyDelete@ Tash - The hill in the old photo is the “Fortezza Nuova”. The white buildings are replaced by trees since it became a public park.
ReplyDeleteMust be a very popular area.
ReplyDeleteexcellent post. I love the old photo showing the same scene many years ago. such history.
ReplyDeleteThe Fosso Reale is so very interesting!
ReplyDeleteJust love Italy! I noticed that the pose of the Grand Duke is that of the 'Apollo Belvedere' in the Vatican. A Roman statue which so captured the public imagination in the 19th c. & is now almost forgotten.
ReplyDeleteI like it when you take us around and show us a different view of something we've seen before. I thought I recognized that statue!
ReplyDeleteWonderful pictures. You are very fortunate to live in such a beautiful place.
ReplyDeleteLove the now and then photo. And some interesting facts about the Piazza.
ReplyDeleteThe contrast between then and now is very cool. The plaza is amazing in itself and is what I like so much about Livorno and Italy. Big, grand spaces. Huge statues and lots of history.
ReplyDeleteNice post!!
Is incredible: a square is a bridge!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful and interesting history: thanks for the series of photographs!
:-)
Great work! You really know how to fit giant spaces into the limits of a photo! Super!
ReplyDeleteI think that the European concept of public squares is to be envied! How pleasant it must be to be able to gather on a wide expanse over a bridge.
ReplyDeleteThis is so fascinating! I wouldn't even have thought this huge plaza was a 'bridge'! I'm also amazed that it still looks largely unchanged from the old illustration.
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