Restoration of the century: the collapsed spire of Notre Dame Cathedral will be restored by Christmas

It took about 1000 centuries-old oak trees to create it

“The return of the spire, in my opinion, will be a symbol that we are winning the battle for Notre Dame,” said General Jean-Louis Georgelin, in charge of the reconstruction project for the cathedral, which was badly damaged in a 2019 fire. Then the fire destroyed the wooden floors – the roof of the cathedral, along with the famous spire and clock, completely burned down and collapsed. The restoration of one of the most famous architectural masterpieces in the world has become a task of national importance for France. The country’s President Emmanuel Macron called the work of the team of specialists involved in recreating the building unprecedented.

Everyone who has ever been to Paris must go to see this monument, described in the famous novel by Victor Hugo. The wooden spire of the cathedral is no less famous than Notre Dame de Paris itself. Largely because it was already changed once and with great fanfare. The fact is that the spire, which was erected in 1220-1230, has worn out greatly over the centuries: in 1606 it partially collapsed due to strong winds, and it was finally dismantled at the end of the 18th century. In the middle of the “golden age”, the restoration of the cathedral began, and there was a lot of noise around it, because the architects took a lot of liberties.

In 1859, the architect and restorer Eugene Emmanuel Viollet le Duc installed a new spire on Notre Dame Cathedral. His version was not an exact copy of the old one. Viollet le Duc did the so-called “style” restoration, which in today’s understanding of the word cannot be called restoration. He took De Garneri’s historical drawing of a spire as a basis, but added to it a lot of different elements that gave the structure more splendor. Moreover, around the spire he installed new statues that depicted himself, his assistants, inspectors and contractors. “To restore a building does not mean to maintain it, to repair it or to restore its strength, it means to restore it to a complete form that, perhaps, never really existed,” Le Duc wrote arrogantly. In short, the architect’s work had a great resonance in the century before last – many called it “barbaric.” The construction of the new spire, which was constructed from centuries-old oak trees, lasted 12 years and required large investments.

After the fire, restorers first had to decide whether to try to restore the historical 13th-century spire, return Le Duc’s version, or make a modern version. “The spire of the 19th century fit harmoniously into the exterior of Notre Dame, we set the task of reproducing the work of the architect of the century before last,” architect Philippe Villeneuve, who is now responsible for the restoration of the burnt cathedral, announced the final decision two years ago.

Finding centuries-old oak trees became a separate “quest” for him. The French press called this operation a “tree hunt.” Indeed, is it a joke to find approximately 1000 oak trees aged from 150 to 200 years that meet the required criteria for length (18 meters) and diameter (more than 1 meter)? They were searched throughout the country, and as a result, ancient trees from 200 forests were harvested, including from the royal forest of Berce in the Loire region. After this, the oaks still had to be dried using a special technology for 18 months.

Despite the complexity of the work, they went according to plan and even somewhat ahead of schedule. The authorities were rushing the restorers to make it in time for Catholic Christmas. Now the wooden roof and spire, 96 meters high, have been completely installed. All that remains is to cover the spire with lead, which requires 250 tons of metal. This is exactly what Viollet le Duc used in the 19th century. After this, the scaffolding will be removed, and the cathedral will appear in the form we remember it before the fire. They must be in time by December 25th.

However, there is still a lot of work ahead – on the interiors and other details. For example, it is necessary to restore liturgical furniture made of dark brown bronze, as well as 1,500 chairs made of solid oak. They promise to open Notre Dame to tourists and believers by the end of next year, right before the New Year. Although some work will be carried out in 2025.

Before the fire, the Gothic cathedral received about 14 million tourists annually and, presumably, after the restoration there will be even more people wanting to see the restored symbol of France.