On
the small wall that seperates the loggia from the stairs leading to the prison,
are the old Florentine units of measure, "The Staio" and "Mezzo
Staio" which were used to measure dry goods, the "Braccio Fiorentino" for
length and the "Coltello" (literally the "knife") which was
the permitted length of a weapon that the townspeople were allowed to carry on
their person. The stone column with the coats of arms of the Florentine Medici
family was erected in 1548 to honour the visit of Cosimo I de' Medici, the first
Grand Duke of Tuscany.