Translated as the Bridge of Fists, Ponte dei Pugni has an exciting history. A few hundred years ago, it hosted the so-called “War of the fists” between the Castellani and the Nicolloti districts. Each district had a champion who would box for hours on this bridge as people cheered from their windows. The victory move for the fighters was to throw their opponent into the water. The district that kept their men “dry” won the challenge. The fights weren’t necessarily restricted to fists too… it wasn’t uncommon for attendees to bring knives, daggers, sticks, and even spiked boat poles. Clearly things didn’t always end well.