The city's oldest surviving bridge replaced a stone predecessor built by the Romans slightly upstream. Constructed in 1345 after several earlier attempts were swept away by the river, it spans the Arno at its narrowest point. In 1944 it was the only bridge to be spared by the Germans, but was nearly swept away by flood waters in 1966. In its arcades are jewellers and goldware shops which draw souvenir hunters and the merely curious in their droves.