Vasari Corridor, the great reopening in 2021
In the year of the birth of Cosimo I the announcement of the project for the reopening of the path desired by the last Duke of Florence in 1565
Like the Uffizi, the Vasari Corridor was designed by the architect Giorgio Vasari by Cosimo I de 'Medici. The work was commissioned and carried out in just 5 months in 1565, on the occasion of the marriage between the son of the Grand Duke, Francis I, and Johanna of Austria. The meat market that took place on Ponte Vecchio since 1345
it was moved for reasons of decoration and in its place the goldsmiths' shops that still occupy the bridge were moved. Its function was to allow the grand dukes to move quickly, safely and in a clean way, without going down the streets that at the time were unhealthy and muddy, from their palace, in Palazzo Pitti, to the administration buildings (Uffizi) and Government (Palazzo Vecchio, connected to the Gallery through the so-called 'Passetto').
The project refers to the original drawings made by Giorgio Vasari. The announcement of the reopening project was made by the director of the Uffizi Eike Schmidt in the year of the 500th anniversary of the birth of Cosimo I de 'Medici. Closed in December 2016 for security reasons, the new path of the Vasari Corridor will be feasible in only one direction, that is from the Uffizi (entrance) to Palazzo Pitti (exit), and it is foreseen at the moment that it contains, a maximum of 125 people at the same time. At the end of the itinerary, visitors can choose whether to go out in the Boboli Gardens or continue inside Palazzo Pitti, near the Galleria Palatina.
As for the set-ups, more than 700 paintings will be no longer part of the itinerary, including a large group of self-portraits, which in the past few decades were hanging on the walls of Vasari. Removed in recent months, the self-portraits will be exhibited in a series of rooms opening soon on the first floor of the Gallery of Statues and Paintings.
In the light of its new function as a panoramic walkway over Florence, the 73 windows placed along the route will be opened in order to allow visitors to admire the beauty of the historic center observed from the unique and evocative view of the walkway as much as possible. About 30 ancient sculptures and a collection of Greek and Roman inscriptions will decorate the Vasarian. Then there will be a space dedicated to the sixteenth century frescoes, realized by Giorgio Vasari himself.
The Corridor will be open on an ordinary basis, albeit by reservation. At the moment it is possible to visit the initial part of the Vasari Corridor, that is the Prince's Path that connects Palazzo Vecchio to the Uffizi Gallery. The visit is by reservation and includes the ticket for both museums.