In 2022, the crossing of the transept was combed by archaeologists. An unprecedented operation which revealed several impressive remains, still studied today in order to reveal their entire history.
Archaeologists have never been able to study the cathedral so closely. In the spring of 2022, in the middle of the restoration phase of Notre-Dame de Paris after its fire, preventive archaeological excavations were carried out by the National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (Inrap) in the crossing of the transept.
An unprecedented opportunity which made it possible to reveal real treasures, hidden for years under the feet of visitors and faithful.
“The excavation of Notre-Dame de Paris is an exhilarating excavation,” Dominique Garcia, president of the institute, confided to BFM Paris Île-de-France in September. “We discovered Roman remains, remains from the early Middle Ages,” he listed.
“This is the positive side of this project”, summarizes the chief architect Philippe Villeneuve in a video from Inrapdedicated to excavations. “All of this is areas of investigation for researchers that would never have happened if it hadn’t been for (the fire).”
The most impressive is surely the unearthing of several burials, in particular two anthropomorphic lead sarcophagi.
Two lead sarcophagi
The first was easy to identify, since it was decorated with a bronze plaque with a name. It contains the remains of Canon Antoine de la Porte, who died in 1710. “He is one of those who counts the most in the history of the cathedral,” explains Jean-Michel Leniaud, president of the Society of Friends of Notre Dame. -Dame de Paris at BFMTV.com.
The remains of the person buried in the second lead sarcophagus are not officially identified, but experts tend to believe that it is the body of the French poet Joachim du Bellay, who died in 1560.
The artist was reportedly buried in Notre-Dame alongside his uncle, but in 1758 his coffin was not found. Scientific analyzes carried out on the remains found in 2022 reveal traces of illnesses from which Joachim du Bellay suffered in the last years of his life. Formal identification of the body may take several more years.
The two sarcophagi are still being studied today at the forensic institute of the Toulouse University Hospital, to reveal all their secrets. Other vaults, made of stone and plaster, were also revealed by the excavation, a vestige of the medieval past of the Notre-Dame de Paris necropolis.
-The ancient medieval rood screen revealed
Little by little, the excavations brought to light lost vestiges: those of the medieval rood screen dating from the 13th century. The rood screen is a gallery forming a separation between the choir and the nave. Over time, and particularly after the Revolution, most of the church rood screens were destroyed.
That of Notre-Dame was destroyed in the 18th century and its fragments buried in the ground. Through these excavations, 1,030 fragments ranging from a few grams to more than 300 kilos each were revealed and collected. They are sculpted with great finesse and above all, some still show traces of color and paint. In total, nine tonnes of remains were recovered by Inrap teams.
“This discovery completely renews our knowledge of the rood screen,” insists Christophe Besnier, the archaeologist responsible for the excavation for the institute in the Inrap video cited earlier. This opens horizons on the perception of the sacred in medieval and modern times.”
A polychrome statue torso was, for example, revealed, as well as several statue heads, painted sculptures showing that the old rood screen had the Passion of Christ as its theme. In the vault of Canon de la Porte, reused sculpted and painted elements were also found.
By studying the discovered fragments, experts will also be able to estimate what could still be buried. A reconstitution, even partial, could also see the light of day.
Secrets buried forever?
Alongside these objects steeped in history, archaeologists have brought to light a raft, that is to say a platform on which several other elements were placed, dated between the 14th and 16th century. It sat on several different soil strata, built of a sand and lime mortar, a wealth of information from medieval times to the present day.
This is the first element that was revealed to light during these excavations, with the caloriferes, brick heating pipes installed by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc.
The excavations ended on April 8, 2022, before the necessary assembly at this location of a 100-meter scaffolding, which was used to erect the spire and the vaults of the crossing. To do this, an earthwork was carried out over around forty centimeters, making the area completely inaccessible for decades, even hundreds of years.
“We must leave some for future generations!” concludes philosophically the president of the Society of Friends of Notre-Dame Jean-Michel Leniaud.
