5 years after fire, Paris's iconic Notre-Dame Cathedral nearly restored • FRANCE 24 English

Paris's Notre-Dame Cathedral, ravaged by fire in 2019, is on track to re-open on time on December 8, the head of the reconstruction said Wednesday. The fire at the UNESCO-listed cathedral, which welcomed 12 million visitors a year, shocked the world on April 15, 2019.
#NotreDame #Paris #UNESCO
🔔 Subscribe to France 24 now: f24.my/YTen
🔴 LIVE - Watch FRANCE 24 English 24/7 here: f24.my/YTliveEN
🌍 Read the latest International News and Top Stories: www.france24.com/en/
Like us on Facebook: f24.my/FBen
Follow us on X (Twitter): f24.my/Xen
Browse the news in pictures on Instagram: f24.my/IGen
Discover our TikTok videos: f24.my/TKen
Get the latest top stories on Telegram: f24.my/TGen

[@brucewilliams8714]

With the grime of centuries of incense smoke removed, the interior will be a startling revelation. I remember It as gloomy and grey. Congratulations, France.

[@delphzouzou4520]

Yes, they rediscovered several paintings that were all covered and dark for decades and which are now completely cleaned and restored as new. It will be magnificent.

[@AlphaGametauri]

@@delphzouzou4520 Just hope now they keep it that way

[@atomatman3104]

YOUR GRIME IS A CRIME.

[@SavageDragon999]

Cathedrals should be majestic and mysterious. Brand new cathedrals just do not have that charm that can only arise from centuries of patination.

[@mururoa7024]

@@SavageDragon999 This rebirth doesn't make it brand new, only cleaner. There was no way they could've restored it from the fire and water damage and somehow preserve the centuries of patination aka grime and filth.

[@telosmonos_gustavo]

The hard work of so many people to restore Notre-Dame de Paris is finally reaching its' conclusion, that is truly beautiful to behold! I hope that a special mass is held for just the firefighters and first responders who saved it, along with the many people who daily have worked on repairing and restoring this heritage site to its' full glory. Que Dieu bénisse les gens de France et Notre-Dame 🙏

[@jean-yvesmartin6934]

Merci.

[@kristoffermangila]

I agree. A Pontifical High Mass shoud be held for those that helped save the cathedral, as well as for those who worked in its restoration.

[@marcwells03]

This is a travesty. Waste of money! Give the money to the sex abuse victims.

[@jean-yvesmartin6934]

@@marcwells03 many French people would disagree with you

[@marcwells03]

@@jean-yvesmartin6934 who cares? There are also many French people that want Sharia Law. I assume you don’t support that…..

[@martijnkeisers5900]

Wonderful news! Reborn like a phoenix out of the ashes, may she bring joy, hope and peace to all who visit her!

[@woodmason]

A restoration that has brought back the splendor of this glorious Cathedral. So many dedicated and skilled workers have made this possible. Bless them all

[@TxCwby]

BEAUTIFUL!!! Absolutely gorgeous! France' soul is restored (soon to be). A resounding world wide applause for all the workers, artists, stone masons, architects, engineers, carvers, electricians, ALL those chosen to complete this glorious work!

[@bbpete8349]

I was fortunate to attend a service a number of years ago and was heartbroken when this magnificent place caught fire. Thank God for the reconstruction and renaissance through people, efforts, money, time etc.!!!!!

[@bartman59laj55]

What do you mean ‘caught fire’? Muslim radicals burnt it down.....

[@michaelcrummy8397]

I think the progress being made on the restoration of Notre Dame de Paris is fantastic. God bless all those involved in this inspired effort. I hope to see it in person and pray there in the next couple years.

[@jaceware8808]

I visited Notre Dame 20 years ago. I would love to visit again now that it has been restored inside and centuries of soot removed. The new spire is beautiful.

[@boredgrass]

What a magnificent achievement! You can be proud of this! I will come to Paris just to see Notre Dame!

[@rosiemcnaughton9933]

So happy to see this beautiful building come to life again. Awesome work of everyone involved.

[@Strykenine]

I cannot wait to visit France and see this piece of history brought back to life. I am thrilled for the people of Paris.

[@liquidsnake6879]

dunno what people of Paris you're talking about but the people of 2024 Paris have no love for this place and it's a matter of time until it burns again

[@andyroo9381]

Absolutely incredible! After the fire, the task seemed so daunting. Now here we are and it has come back to life. Thank you to all the craftsman for your hard work and dedication.

[@manuellaopao8036]

......sometimes bad things turned out to be a blessing....Notre Dame truly a global icon...

[@lachlanbaker2031]

I’m shocked they didn’t desecrate it and am so pleased it is being restored with its dignity intact. Praise God!

[@radicalxg8282]

Im not a religious person but i like to visit temples to view how beautiful they are, Notre-dame is in my bucket list.

[@scoon2117]

Im glad they didnt do some weird postmodern re-do, keeping it original is the way to go.

[@johnalexander6408]

Vive La France! A magnificent achievement!

[@henkvandenbergh1301]

And now imagine this being built WITHOUT all the modern tools. Let's not forget the thousands of people who built it so many centuries ago.

[@maizie9454]

a world without end.

[@henkvandenbergh1301]

Congratulations to the people of France. It hurt seeing it burn. I hope to get back to Paris some day and see it in its renewed glory.

[@backintimealwyn5736]

It almost fells even greater to have been able to rebuild it and rediscover it. The most important thing is that we managed to rebuild it the same, with the same techniques. Instead of a loss, it's a rebirth.

[@DH007-w2d]

Congratulations to all who help as there are US, canadians and even muslims working there. And thanks to all that donated, from all over the world.

[@randyschreiner7807]

Most wonderful with the notable exception of the altar which is totally out of place in this magnificent building.

[@joefranks4235]

Yea, it is pretty ugly.

[@KerolsGames]

I can’t believe they really are so fast with restoring!! I know they said 5years and I was like “not possible lol” and now look at them opening already this December!!

[@backintimealwyn5736]

we have great workers specialized in restauration , stone carving, and carpentry. A great decision we made decades ago was to invest in that knowlege and preserve the building traditions. this was our strength , we had everything on spot , quarries, old trees, skill, workforce, painters, sculptors, specialized architects. This was the work of their lifetime, in a way they got lucky. Macron wanted an international contest to rebuild it with modern materials, concrete, amluminium and carbon, I'm so glad he was stoped, it made us very angry at the time, right now he's still pushing to replace the intact stained glasses with modern art. he got the modern alter though.

[@KerolsGames]

@@backintimealwyn5736I’m also glad it was not replaced with some modern art that would be an actual shame tbh. I just want it to look like it used to

[@Darman426]

The main work is done for tourists and to open it. But you have to know that the 100% milestone of restoration will not be achieved until ... 2045. Yup, they announced 20y of work still needed for the "not" visible parts of Notre Dame.

[@jimwiskus8862]

There are just no words.

[@rtroyer8963]

Well done! What an amazing team of restoration specialists and artists! You have brought back Notre Dame to a level of health and beauty it has not seen in at least three hundred years! Cheers to all of You!🎉🎉🎉

[@bobbiescrisps9208]

Well done France!!

[@jeffrp8388]

Bravo, Kudos and a huge thanks to all involved.

[@peterpluim7912]

The French have a history of great engineers and artisans and they did it again. I have followed the restoration as closely as I could and it was wonderful to see how the press reported on the savoir faire of small and medium companies. I often check on the progress of the restoration of Buckingham Palace but it looks like there is nothing to report. The cathedral is restored with private funding and the palace is restored with public money. I think something about that. :)

[@franciscouderq1100]

Indeed and the palace restoration is not petty cash.

[@heliedecastanet1882]

Versailles is restored with public money (along with some patronages). The same for Compiègne or many palaces in France. Restoration and conservation are two of the biggest budgets of the Ministère de la Culture.

[@peterpluim7912]

@@heliedecastanet1882 And so it should be. I just wanted to point at the total lack of transparency or the British Royal Family. The public is very well informed about the restoration of Versailles. The

[@heliedecastanet1882]

@@peterpluim7912 Oh, ok, sorry, I think I missed the point ! Thanks for the answer.

[@OsmosisHD]

Really impressive doing all that in just 5 years!

[@kristoffermangila]

Hordes of people that will come to Paris for the Olympics will appreciate the efforts of all the artisans who poured their hearts and souls into this restoration. And when Notre Dame is fully opened in December, it would be glorious!

[@Jungletraveler00_12]

I can imagine how crowded it will be lol

[@CapAnson12345]

Never lose your heritage... your descendants will pay the price for it.

[@hafizsirajkumar7927]

Good work and keep up.. I am Muslim and tear for church.. I respect all temple

[@Rays_Bad_Decisions]

You know this is one of 100s of churches burnt down across Europe....

[@mururoa7024]

It's remarkable they were able to pull it off in about 5 years time while still using traditional building techniques. I thought it was going to take at least double that.

[@afbocc]

And Covid being a factor for about 2 years by in large.

[@bagolbones]

Looks better than before the fire, fantastic job!

[@DH007-w2d]

ND looks hundred years younger. And despite my wish not to go to Paris again (too noisy for a provincial), I will.

[@peppertrout]

Sometimes, nothing can be done better than by the French.

[@DH007-w2d]

Exactement.

[@DannerPlace]

Great job France!!!

[@johnballish3016]

Awesome cathedral iconic so happy for the restore

[@Ominous89]

Awesome

[@danielm7089]

Having seen the original in person about 20 years ago the restored interior is so much brighter.

[@maurocoimbra9624]

An amazing work!

[@luigisorreda4179]

History is alive again !!!!

[@maxdepasquale2351]

Beautiful.

[@jodieshannon5033]

Beautiful, can’t wait to see

[@seanagulan9481]

Notrè Dame Cathedral coming back to its former glory!

[@j.reinholme]

Good on France for getting this done so quickly and with so much care. If America were in charge of something like this, we'd probably use AI to recreate everything and try to get it done as cheaply as possible without any sort of mind given to artistry or history.

[@comsuonkhi]

all of them are the best architect, engineer in the world

[@WannabeAGYEEHEE]

dont speak english if you cant

[@marna_li]

Nice to see that the church is soon restored! But thinking about what problems all that lead in the roof caused to the environment during the fire, I think the choice of adding new lead to the roof is a bit odd.

[@DH007-w2d]

Bonjour Marna. Forgive my broken english... The fact is that they've added many anti fire devices, smoke alarms, sprinklers, automatic closing doors, computer assisted alarms and so on that weren't there before. And adding those to many of our historical buildings.

[@dougdiplacido2406]

I am so very glad that the grand cathedral is being restored back to its original design. Early on some of the horrid ideas that delusional architects came up with were frightening.

[@bluepototo7671]

Now send the people working on it to the Danes, someone up there didn't get the memo to be careful while restoring hundred years old wood buildings.

[@johnash9588]

Wonderful.

[@richardsingh5827]

Magnificent

[@AudioTones67]

Beautiful work by all involved. I just hope there have been measures put intio place to prevent it from happening again.

[@backintimealwyn5736]

yes, they say they did. Noone knows what happened though. It's classified. Officialy a cigarette bud... yeah right, classified cigaret bud on a hundred years old hardened wood.

[@chrisnewman7281]

this would never happen in the US nothing it would appear would warrant that amount of care and attention and money

[@superresistant0]

Why every time the TV use Heroes 3 of might and magic sound effects?

[@parallel586]

💐

[@melodymacken9788]

Spectacular.

[@rrl4245]

"Nearly"? I'll be in Paris in September, will I be able to tour the church? Or is it not 'nearly' restored...

[@kowloon8080]

December 8th

[@rrl4245]

@@kowloon8080 That's what I heard - not 'nearly' enough for me... 🤥

[@derschmiddie]

Wait this is already 5 Years ago? 😨

[@Hardrian_Hardrada_Cicero]

No, the fire was five years ago, this is to show case the overall and current progress of the cathedral since the fire.

[@user-sq4vn9vb6l]

It's been 5 years scene the fire.

[@bsod111]

long live Paris! big love from Moscow

[@spaceman001e7]

Hopefully they restore the high altar so it can be used. The new altar is ugly, they could have done much better

[@backintimealwyn5736]

Macron had to have his "modern" gadget. No, the new altar is done. Boring piece of raw metal.

[@Star-fc4ni]

The structure needed to be repaired/restored for a very long time. I do not believe anything about the fire. Notre Dame was suffering massive deteriation. It is to bad the Cathedral was set on fire to get so many millions for restoration. I am glad the Cathedral will be taken care of and preserved well.

[@IsleOfFeldspar]

Wouldn’t the surrounding area become lead contaminated as the lead roof interacts with water and acid rain over time?

[@ncg5560]

Everyone involved is doing such outstanding work. I am extremely impressed. How lovely it will be when finished.

[@epache315]

Notre Dame Has Restored

[@lucyguiland-nt9vu]

❤❤❤🎉🎉🎉 super 🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@VickersDoorter]

All it needs now is for Jean-Luc the scaffolder to have one last crafty Gauloise. I mean, what could possibly go wrong...

[@Walgriff]

🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩

[@mjbaz1]

I applaud their monumental efforts and amazing work. However, I think they should have rethought using lead panels on the roof. They could have used Terne Coated Stainless Steel, it would not have the health risks that using lead entails. And there is no difference in appearance.

[@thecwwshow8036]

That’s crazy

[@krismurphy7711]

They should call it "The Phoenix Cathedral"

[@tonyburzio4107]

Everyone is missing the most important learning moment of the restoration. Most historic buildings burn during restoration, and a night fire watchman is a heck of a lot cheaper than rebuilding.

[@franciscouderq1100]

There were alerts but they couldn’t find anything wrong

[@backintimealwyn5736]

probably our peacdeful friends, but they classified it. France spends billions in restauration , burning to avoid cost on national momuments that belong to the state is not to be expected here. Some private owned chateaus do burn though. Plus the restauration was almost done and fully paied for when it happened.

[@sheehanchua992]

did they use the construction materials of the time period notre-dame was built?

[@Adrien-on7gz]

Yes

[@tomwestbrook]

Did the statue of Jeanne d'Arc survive the fire and will be restored?

[@miraclo3]

but will it sound the same when people sing?

[@bendenisereedy7865]

Its not Nautre Dame its Notre Dame as in knot.

[@ChipsChallenge95]

I’m pretty sure the people who burned it down did it on purpose, what ever happened with that

[@Wilhuff_T]

Did they ever found out what started the fire???

[@backintimealwyn5736]

classified. "might be a cigaret bud" , yeah right.

[@heliedecastanet1882]

@@backintimealwyn5736 It is not classified at all. Where did you read such a news ?

[@Ghostface6528]

@@heliedecastanet1882probably from Twitter and Reddit.

[@notnek202]

Only Latin mass

[@lesamisdelacuisineprovenca9534]

The paintings have restored.... Johann of Arc ! Oops....

[@shaynewheeler9249]

😢😢😢😢😢😢

[@Turboy65]

I still say they should have taken the lead that melted off the roof and used it to mold souvenirs to sell to raise money for the restoration.

[@samjl4]

The minimalist altar and seating is dreadful, it has happened to many cathedrals and minsters here in England, they do it so they can easily turn the space into a commercialised one that they can rent out to discos and concerts, it’s the sign of the first step of turning a religious building into a less religious one, French Christian’s should have bitterly resisted the taking advantage of a tragic fire to do this.

[@TimberlakeTigerGirl]

What are you talking about? It looks almost exactly the same as it once was. You should of seen some of the ideas people put forth in order to 'modernize' it. That would of been the stuff of nightmares. France already decided that parties and concerts won't happen unless it's a religious event.

[@WannabeAGYEEHEE]

So wonderful to see so much money being poured into the most important issues we have in scociety today!!

[@SuperLn1991]

Notre dame is one of the most important touristic site of Paris and tourism allows thousands of people to pay their bills and feed their families. So yes it's important .

[@WannabeAGYEEHEE]

@@SuperLn1991 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@TimberlakeTigerGirl]

The restoration of Notre Dame was entirely funded by the private sector. Not a cent of taxpayers dollars was used.

[@paulpurpura191]

Notre Dame is scheduled to re-open on December 8th, on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

[@patrickgomes2213]

I love the chair design and the new baptismal font. For some reason, I don't like the design of the new altar. Oh, well, maybe it's just not a work of art designed for me. And that's okay. The awful design doesn't detract from its spiritual function.

[@lovecraftscat2420]

There is hope for the west

[@stormy_waters]

Magnifique ✨✝🇫🇷

[@marcfournier9531]

Very nice work. We hope macron and its court will not inaugurate the splendor!

[@DaveVelo1]

The French aren't very religious. Roughly 25% consider themselves Catholics. Notre Dame is a historical attraction that draws millions into Paris every year. That's the reason it was rebuilt.

[@TimberlakeTigerGirl]

It's not just about tourism. Notre Dame is a part of their cultural heritage and identity. It's to them what the pyramids are to Egypt.

[@williamtomkiel8215]

how much did tht cost? modern hi-tech at work . .

[@swann67000]

Around 800 millions euro of donation

[@fredbcl4828]

Near 1 billion euro of donation

[@jimafton5659]

Did they arrest the ppl that started the fire

[@jerroldbates355]

It was an arson fire.

[@Ghostface6528]

You got any proof that it was arson?

[@tettazwo9865]

Imagine how much good could be done with all the money!

[@Nikolas_PH]

So we just simply let it stay ruined and rot for the next years, it has been stood many decades man.

[@TimberlakeTigerGirl]

It was all paid for by private donations

[@eddieg6436]

Excellent news!! ……when you have a BILLION $$$, anything is possible!!

[@swann67000]

800 millions, and they only spent 700 millions actually.

[@eddieg6436]

@@swann67000 Over ONE BILLION was raised internationally. If they only used 700 million, great.

[@swann67000]

@@eddieg6436 no only around 800 millions was raised

[@timothyharris9252]

As my first boss in architecture told me, "Given enough time and money there's nothing we can't accomplish."

[@nathanventura548]

Much of the funding came from a multitude of sources, both public and private.

[@tt-ew7rx]

They spent less money on this than we spent on a couple of barges to contain migrants...

[@SuperLn1991]

This money allows workers to get work but will also allows thousands of tourism workers to get back to work and feed their families.

[@AshikJonathan]

The arsonists are on the rise though

[@audiat4054]

Great achievement. But China news claims they did this restoration, so China people say the new Paris's Notre-Dame Cathedral is "made by China". I think France should clarify this issue.

[@nickfromm5315]

Wether it was islamism that caused the fire, or dissonance within the Catholic Church, BOTH will be dealt with!!!

[@67daltonknox]

But that new spire belongs in Las Vegas, not on Notre Dame.

[@thomasw.eggers4303]

I'm sure Vegas will create a bigger and better one, probably made out of plastic.

[@delphzouzou4520]

They built it exactly as the other one.

[@67daltonknox]

@@delphzouzou4520 When was it you went blind?

[@delphzouzou4520]

@@67daltonknox I don't know what you mean, the is the exact same spire as the previous one. That's how it is. I don't understand what you are trying to prove or even say..

[@gvs376]

@@franciscouderq1100 Between 30 and 40 churches were lit ablaze in France just a few weeks before Notre Dame burned. There's nothing wild and vile about recognizing patterns, means and motive.

[@user-zz8lb6bd7p]

A small contract, became a massive contract for the builder...

[@shailong3254]

Why all the chairs. No one needs to sit. They will just be in the way.

[@Brap-pl2me]

People do customarily sit during Mass lol. It’s principle function is still as a Roman Catholic Cathedral, not as an art gallery/museum.

[@franciscouderq1100]

????