History of Florence - Prehistoric Evidence

Prehistoric Evidence

In the Quaternary Age the Florence-Prato-Pistoia plain was occupied by a great lake bounded by Monte Albano in the west, Monte Giovi in the North and the foothills of Chianti in the South. Even after most of the water had receded, the plain, 50 metres above sea level, was strewn with ponds and marshes which remained until the 18th century when the land was reclaimed. Most of the marshland was in the region of Campi Bisenzio, Signa and Bagno a Ripoli.

It is thought that there was already a garden, at the confluence of the Mugnone with the River Arno between the 10th and the 8th century BC. Between the 7th and 6th centuries BC Etruscans had discovered and used the ford of the Arno near this confluence, closer to the hills of the North and South. A bridge or a ferry was probably constructed here, about ten metres away from the current Ponte Vecchio, but closer to the ford itself. The Etruscans, however, preferred not to build cities on the plain for reasons of defence and instead settled about six kilometres away on a hill. This settlement was a precursor of the fortified centre of Vipsul (today's Fiesole), which was later connected by road to all the major Etruscan centres of Emilia to the North and Lazio to the South.