The world gets its first glimpse inside Notre Dame Cathedral after 5 years under wraps

[ucrdem]

Source: Associated Press

By THOMAS ADAMSON Updated 7:12 AM PST, November 29, 2024

PARIS (AP) — Five years after a catastrophic fire reduced Notre Dame Cathedral to a smoldering shell, The Associated Press entered the Gothic masterpiece for a first glimpse of its fully restored interiors during a visit with French President Emmanuel Macron that was broadcast to the public. The transformation is nothing short of breathtaking: light dances across brilliant stone, gilded accents gleam anew, and the Gothic icon’s majesty is reborn. From Dec. 8, visitors will once again marvel at the cathedral’s blend of history and craftsmanship.



Overhead, incandescent chandeliers hang majestically from each vaulted arch, stretching from west to east, casting a warm, golden light throughout the nave.

The meticulous restoration process involved cleaning over 42,000 square meters of stone using innovative latex peels to strip away centuries of grime without causing damage. Conservators uncovered mason marks etched by medieval builders — intimate traces of the artisans who shaped Notre Dame in the 12th and 13th centuries.

This gleaming transformation is a stark contrast to the wreckage of 2019, when the nave was strewn with charred debris.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/notre-dame-macron-visit-fire-restoration-paris-9760183f4a4827919a933fee9b64a8c2

[FakeNoose]

1. Oh my, it's amazing work! Such beauty should last forever ....

[ucrdem]

2. It will be nice to see it without the perpetual scaffolding...

for a few hundred years at least !

[Joinfortmill]

3. Was there in 2014. Seemed much darker then.

[sinkingfeeling]

4. The centuries of grim have been removed....

https://www.cnn.com/style/live-news/macron-notre-dame-paris-reopening-11-29-24-intl/index.html


From inside Notre Dame, CNN’s Senior International Correspondent Melissa Bell saw the finished labors of the cathedral for the first time.

“As you walk in, what hits you is just how light and bright it is,” Bell said.

“You realize that before the fire, many centuries of worship and passage and life had meant that it was very dark. There was something really somber when you came inside. That has been completely transformed,” she said.

“It isn’t so much they’ve restored it to its glory of five years ago, but that they’ve restored it to its glory of many centuries ago.”

“It’s incredibly beautiful but it almost feels like a different cathedral,” Bell added. “You can see it for the first time.”

[littlemissmartypants]

10. Grime and grim. Definitely brighter. ❤️

[sinkingfeeling]

15. I lost my 'e'!

[republianmushroom]

5. Beautiful !

[Wild blueberry]

6. Wow

Thank you to everyone who worked on this. Beautiful!

[mountain grammy]

7. But is it enough to please God?

Is anything? Would Jesus preach here?

[Sky Jewels]

9. The same god that caused or allowed the Holocaust, world wars, pandemics, slavery, famines, diseases, etc.?

"God" is a psychopathic monstrous, murderous asshole. I'm glad "He" doesn't actually exist.

[Marthe48]

11. When we visited Notre Dame in 2005

I wept, so did my daughters. It wasn't because we felt we were in the presence of God. It was because we imagined the effort individuals made to create this building. I think of the planning and compromise, the cooperation that was needed to do the work. Yes, it was built for worship, but it is a constant reminder of what humans can do if they will work together, what greatness we are capable of creating with our own hands, our own vision.

[FakeNoose]

17. I had a similar reaction when I entered the Cathedral in Cologne, the Kolnerdom

To think that the Cologne cathedral could have easily been destroyed during the bombings in World War II. It would have been lost for all time, if it hadn't been for the heroic efforts of private citizens.

The Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris survived the war, and so many centuries of various threats, only to succumb to that terrible fire 5 years ago.

[Marthe48]

18. I think the guide we had in Paris said hitler avoided bombing Paris

because he admired the city. So the city was not as ruined as London was. hitler wanted to destroy Paris when his army was in retreat, but his general ignored him.

We were inLondon on the same trip, and visited St. Paul's Cathedral. Our guide in London said that London citizens valiantly worked to save the cathedral from german firebombs.

I hope that the spirit that moves us to work together to make these wonders, preserve them and defend them from destruction, will move us to defend ideas that are in danger right now.

[FirstLight]

8. well, hell....there's another reason I need to see Paris, etc...

I've been in love with the idea of going since I was a teen. It's been on my bucket list for years...

Since going back to college to finish my degree in Anthropology, now the caves @ lascaux are the biggies, but a little swing through paris would be lovely....sigh....

[littlemissmartypants]

12. I wonder how many...

Hungry children and mothers that cash could have helped?

[Elessar Zappa]

13. Society can do both.

Beautifying our surroundings is a worthy endeavor.

[ucrdem]

14. I think so.

And how many would have been killed if the money had gone to build bombs?

[ucrdem]

16. But think how many it's already helped, and in a sustainable way . . .

Some 250 companies and hundreds of experts were mobilised for a restoration costing €700 million in pure donations in what was dubbed the “building site of the century”.

All 2,000 people who contributed to the work have been invited to Friday’s event, of whom at least 1,300 are expected to attend. “This final site visit is an opportunity to thank them in particular – from wood craftsmen to those of metal and stone, from scaffolders to roofers, from bell makers to art restorers, from gilders to masons and sculptors, from carpenters to organ builders, from architects, archaeologists, engineers and planners to logistical or administrative functions,” Macron said ahead of the visit.

That's a lot of working-class families and their children. And think how many more will be helped by the workers who maintain the building and the shopkeepers, hoteliers, travel guides and assorted pickpockets sustained by future travelers including me?

https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20241129-live-macron-takes-world-on-first-tour-inside-paris-s-restored-notre-dame-cathedral

[EX500rider]

23. France has a lot of starving people does it?

[littlemissmartypants]

26. ...

[electric_blue68]

19. Sooo beautiful! While visiting relatives in Switzerland my aunt took me, and a cousin to Paris...

for several days! I had mentioned wanting to take a train to Paris.

Anyway, our hotel was near the Seine, and not far from from Notre Dame. We passed it a few times by bus. Pre-fire 2016.

Since she'd been there before she took us to near by St Chappelle. A smaller church but filled with many tall, skinny stained glass windows. Very beautiful with their colors cast upon the floor, and walls.

Very Happy to see Notre Dame restored to It's original brilliance!

[LudwigPastorius]

20. I guessed that they wouldn't have Notre Dame restored by Christmas.

Now, I'm going to have to take my hunch back.

[ucrdem]

21. Quasimodo award

for most misérable pun

[yorkster]

28. Great pun. Love 'em.

[ucrdem]

22. video: "Carpenters share their know-how"

[applegrove]

24. The latex was to peel off the lead dust that went everywhere during the fire.

I love how clean the cathedral ended up.

[Emile]

25. Amazing how quickly they rebuilt the cathedral.

Takes longer than that to patch a pothole here.

[Think. Again.]

27. It's so much lighter and brighter than before!

And to think that beautiful structure was once used as a warehouse.