Vittorio Emanuele II street

Running parallel to Via Lambro, this street was planned towards 1838 for the arrival of Ferdinand I and was opened in 1847. It was originally called ‘contrada Ferdinandea’ (Ferdinandean Street). Via Vittorio Emanuele crosses the River Lambro over the Ponte dei Leoni (Lions bridge), which is ‘guarded’ by four lions sculpted by Antonio Tantardini. The bridge replaced the nearby 1st-century Ponte d’Arena (Bridge of Arena) in 1842.