Architecture

Fire-ravaged Notre-Dame cathedral to be restored to original state

Notre-Dame will now be returned to its original state and the plan is for it to be open to the public by 2024
CC 2.0/Flickr user Klovovi
Notre-Dame will now be returned to its original state and the plan is for it to be open to the public by 2024
CC 2.0/Flickr user Klovovi

Following the devastating fire that destroyed a significant section of France's beloved Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral in April, 2019, the French government has finally decided what form its restoration will take. The cathedral will now be rebuilt exactly as it was before – or at least as close as is possible – and to an ambitious deadline.

In the months that followed the destruction of the cathedral's roof and spire in the blaze, French President Emmanuel Macron had suggested its replacement could be a contemporary design and his government announced a competition to design a replacement. Architecture firms from around the world then rushed to enter proposals, ranging from tasteful to completely off-the-wall ideas, including a glowing glass roof and a sustainable rooftop garden.

There was significant pushback however, including from the French Senate, which demanded it be restored to its original state. In the end, Macron has agreed and it will indeed be restored to its previous state, even down to using the original materials, instead of modern, potentially more fireproof and safer alternatives.

One of the alternative contemporary designs put forward for the Notre-Dame was by Vincent Callebaut, who envisioned a sustainable roof and spire that would produce electricity and offer lots of natural light inside
Vincent Callebaut Architectures

Additionally, Macron hopes for Notre-Dame de Paris to be open to visitors by 2024, during which time Paris is due to host the Summer Olympic Games. Any remaining work would then be carried out at a later date. This timescale is very ambitious and was previously criticized in a petition signed by over 1,000 architects and heritage experts, reported Dezeen.

Source: Rebâtir Notre-Dame de Paris

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9 comments
Bodger
And this time maybe they'll install a fire sprinkler system?
paul314
Hasn't it been restored several times in the past? Are they going back to the materials from the 1150s, and using the same techniques that got countless workers killed the first time around?
Peter
No Lead PLEASE!
David V
They are going to use lead again I hear but the wooden beam structure won't be the same. And yes in fact I also hear it's going to be an exact copy of the old spire.
Wolf0579
What a waste of money. Churches are monuments to human self-delusion and a colossal waste of resources that COULD be going to do real things for the betterment of the human race...

We should be investing those resources into science. Maybe, just maybe, we could stop the next pandemic before it becomes a pandemic.

But, no... people are damn determined to lie to themselves...
Pablo
This is terrific news, I was very concerned the choice would be to “improve and update” the design. Want a new style? Build it, somewhere else... Original materials are usually the best, lead will last far longer than any modern substitute. With care, the situation that caused the destruction will not recur.
Aross
Having had the pleasure of visiting this wonderful monument to humanity's ingenuity and creativity I am glad to hear that it will be restored to its original glory. I do agree that a sprinkler system would be a good idea.
Nelson Hyde Chick
It could have been so cool to have say a garden for a roof, but instead they went stupid.
WONKY KLERKY
ref Mssr Vincent Callebaut's offering:
'Who envisioned a sustainable roof and spire that would produce electricity and offer lots of natural light inside'
Well yes it will Vinny lad; just knock those fire damaged ceiling groins out to let it in . . . .......

(Me thinks structural stuff isn't quite your thing Vincent; how about painting some nice starry starry nights . . . ....... Come to think about it, after your scheme . . . .......)

Bon Chance!