idge founded on piles of stone in the Arno, which afterwards was
called the Ponte Vecchio, and it exists to this day; and was much more
narrow than it now is, and was the first bridge which was made in
Florence. And from S. Mary's Gate the walls went on as far as the
turret of Altafonte, which was at the extremity of a projection of the
city, running out to the river Arno, then running on behind the church
of S. Piero Scheraggio, which was so called from a ditch or conduit
called the Scheraggio, which received almost all the rain-water of the
city that flowed into the Arno. And behind the church of S. Piero
Scheraggio was a postern gate, which was called the Peruzza Gate, and
from there the walls went on by the great street as far as the Via del
Garbo, where was another postern, and then behind the Badia of
Florence the walls returned to Porta S. Piero. And within so small a
space the new Florence was rebuilt with good walls and frequent
towers, with four master gates, to wit, the Porta San Piero, the Porta
del Duomo, the Porta San Brancazio, and the Porta Santa Maria, the
which were in the form of a cross; and in the midst of the city were
S. Andrea, after the fashion of Rome, and Santa Maria in Campidoglio;
and what now is the Mercato Vecchio was the Mercato di Campidoglio
[Mart of the Capitol], after the fashion of Rome. And the city was
divided into quarters, according to the said four gates; but
afterwards, when the city increased, it was divided into six sestos,
as being a perfect number, for the sesto of Oltrarno was added
thereto, as soon as it was inhabited; and when the Porta di Santa
Maria was pulled down, the name was dropped, and it was divided by the
course of the main street, and on one side was made the sesto of San
Piero Scheraggio, and on the other side that of the Borgo; and the
three first gates continued to give their name to sestos, as they have
done even to our own times. And they gave the sesto of Oltrarno the
lead, to go forth with the host with the ensign of the bridge; and
then San Piero Scheraggio with the ensign of the carroccio [chariot of
war], the which marble carroccio was brought from Fiesole, and stands
before the said church of S. Piero; and then Borgo with the ensign of
the goat [becco], forasmuch as in that sesto abode all the butchers
[beccari], and those of their calling, and they were in those times
very prominent in the city; S. Brancazio next with the ensign of the
lion's paw [b