Corridoio Vasariano

The Corridoio Vasario, which translates to the Vasari Corridor, is an enclosed tunnel connecting the Palazzo Vecchio with the Uffizi Gallery to the Palazzo Pitti. The Corridor entrance is located on the first floor of the Uffizi Gallery. The passage is 1 km long, and tiny windows offer a view of the roads and the Arno River underneath.

It is hung with 17th-century art pieces such as self-portraits of Andrea del Sarto, Rubens, Rembrandt, and Canova, acquired by the Medicis.  Cosimo Ⅰ de Medici was the one who ordered the construction of such a passageway; he was a duke and wanted to connect his place of residence, the Palazzo Pitti, to the Palazzo Vecchio, the government palace. A small carriage was arranged for the Medici and their guests to traverse the 1 km-long passage. It was designed by the skilled architect Giorgio Vasari. Unfortunately, the Corridor has been damaged many times, once during the bombings in World War in 1944 and again when the Italian mafia bombed it in 1993. It was then set up for renovations worth EUR 10 million.