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The Bridge of Avignon or "Pont d'Avignon", in Provence
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In the Middle Ages, the Saint Bénézet bridge was part of one of the most important pilgrimage routes between Italy and Spain. It would become essential to the pontifical court, which settled in Avignon in the 14th century.
Very soon, the cardinals moved to Villeneuve to escape the pollution of Avignon, at the time described by the poet Petrarch as the "most foul and stinking city on Earth". |
Map of Avignon, engraved in 1635 by Mérian
Musée du Vieil Avignon
| The bridge was at that time the most direct link between the many residences that the cardinals had had built, and the Popes' Palace situated inside Avignon's city walls. |
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