Notre-Dame de Paris: from the fire to the reopening

The Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris is known the world over as a symbol of Gothic architecture. It took almost 200 years to build, and many important events have taken place within its walls.

Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris caught fire on April 15, 2019.

Among the damage, the lead roof melted, the spire fell, the bell tower collapsed and 5-10% of the artwork was damaged.

The Angel of Saint-Mathieu, the head of the apostle Saint-Thomas, the cock of the spire and the original statues of Saint-Barthélemy, Saint-Jude and Saint-Simon are now on display to the general public.

French President Emmanuel Macron had promised to rebuild the Cathedral within five years. 250 companies and a hundred experts worked for five years to restore the monument, at a cost of hundreds of millions of euros.

The new golden cockerel was installed on February 13, 2024, on top of the cathedral. The old structure, which had fallen during the fire of 2019, was rebuilt identically by architect Philippe Villeneuve.

Finally, five years later, the reconstruction of the Cathedral is finally complete, as promised by French President Emmanuel Macron in 2019.

Notre-Dame Cathedral officially opens its doors on December 7, 2024. Some say it’s a great miracle!

Several activities are being organized to celebrate the reopening of this historic monument. These include an official ceremony, a concert, a first mass open to the public and a reopening octave from December 8 to 15.