Florence’s Ponte Vecchio is one of the most over-photographed spots in the world. But step through the door at number 44r, and time seems to genuinely stop.
The story of Bernardo Antichità begins in the late 19th century, when Caterina Pasquinucci’s great-grandfather, Adolfo Melli, relocated his family to Florence and opened this shop on the ancient bridge, specialising in jewellery and fine works of art. It quickly became a supplier to European royalty and nobility. The shop still holds the original correspondence and certification documents from that era — including the royal warrant granted by the House of Savoy, confirming their role as official suppliers to the heir to the Italian throne. A gilded plaque mounted on the wall reads: Fornitori della Casa di S.A.R. il Principe di Piemonte — “Supplier to the Household of H.R.H. the Prince of Piedmont.” It is the title of Italy’s last crown prince, and the shop’s quietest historical footnote.
