Monday, November 25, 2024 at 1:17 p.m.
On Amal Taazi.
Paris – After a memorable Olympic summer, the eyes of the whole world will once again be riveted, on December 7 and 8, on the French capital for its other flagship event of the year 2024: the highly anticipated reopening of the historic Notre-Dame Cathedral from Paris.
The shock of the images of the terrible fire of April 15, 2019, which almost destroyed this heritage of exceptional universal value, still haunts people’s minds, the date now being engraved in the collective memory.
All those who witnessed, stunned, the conflagration of this jewel of Gothic architecture until the collapse of its roof and its thousand-year-old spire, just like those, even more numerous, who followed the scene live on local and foreign television channels or on social networks, are eager to see Notre-Dame de Paris rise from its ashes.
It took five years of restoration to realize the hoped-for rebirth of this emblematic monument of France, listed since 1991 as a UNESCO world heritage site within the “Paris, banks of the Seine” complex.
This is the ambitious deadline that President Emmanuel Macron set by promising on the evening of the tragic fire, in a most solemn speech from the Elysée, to “rebuild Notre-Dame”.
“I tell you this evening strongly: we are this people of builders. We have so much to rebuild. […] We will rebuild the cathedral even more beautiful and I want it to be completed within five years,” he said.
Since then, an unprecedented national mobilization, reinforced by a surge of solidarity transcending borders, has been associated with this desire to complete this monumental project on time.
“Donations have come from a very large number of countries, including countries which are not of Christian tradition,” the French presidency is assured.
It should be remembered that on the Very High Instruction of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Amir Al Mouminine, the Kingdom of Morocco had decided to make a financial contribution to the reconstruction of Notre-Dame Cathedral, “the symbol of the city of Paris, of ‘history of France and place of contemplation for millions of faithful’.
In total, 843 million euros in donations were collected, according to the Elysée, for this restoration which will have cost 700 million euros for the first two phases (first that of consolidation to avoid the collapse of the cathedral in the months following the fire, and then the restoration itself).
The remaining amount will be used to finance the third phase of restoration, those of the facades and the covering of the sacristy and the choir. This work, already planned before the fire, will be carried out in 2025.
To the constraint of a tight schedule, was added another and not the least: to reconstruct this masterpiece of Gothic architecture identically, with security and protection techniques capable of avoiding damage. other tragic incidents in the future.
Aware of the scale of the challenge, the French president personally monitored the site and the progress of the work, increasing the number of on-site visits.
His final visit before the inauguration is scheduled for November 29. It will be an opportunity to discover the first images of the rebuilt cathedral, the splendor of which will be revealed in its entirety.
In the meantime, the famous 13th century cathedral, which before the fire welcomed between 12 and 14 million people per year, making it the most visited historical monument in Europe, continues to arouse the interest of the curious, Parisians and tourists included, many of whom approached the construction site in the heart of Paris, not far from the banks of the Seine.
“Many people come here to see the progress of the work since the start of the restoration project. Here you can meet all nationalities,” Philippe, one of those second-hand book sellers who are inseparable from the Parisian quays, confides to MAP.
For anyone who can bear witness to the daily flow of visitors since the fire, it is always interesting to see Notre Dame “even injured”.
“People are looking forward to its revival and the opportunity to visit it again. It’s really a big moment that we’ve all been waiting for,” he said.
An observation confirmed by several tourists and visitors met on site.
This is the case of William from Singapore who says he is waiting “impatiently” for the reopening of this monument “representative of France and medieval architecture”. Until now, this art and history fan could be satisfied with a virtual visit to the cathedral, but he admits that this discovery cannot replace the experience of real exploration.
Elyne, who comes from the Philippines for her second time in Paris, remembers with nostalgia her first visit in 2017: “Notre-Dame was not burned then”.
“We are all waiting for the reopening of this cathedral which symbolizes a lot for France and the world,” enthuses the Asian tourist, “very happy to be there” for the occasion.
Naturally, Parisians are the first to look out for this exceptional event in their city’s cultural calendar.
“I am really very happy that Notre-Dame de Paris will reopen and that it will once again be able to welcome visitors and religious people from all over the world,” summarizes Louis, who perceives this reopening as “the victory of creation over destruction, a sort of phoenix that rises from its ashes! “.
