The little local hands who brought back its splendor to Notre-Dame

1. From Vindelle to the stones of the nave

Nicolas Babin has added a string to his bow. The stonemason from Vindelle, an employee of Dagand Atlantique, spent the first three months of 2022 perched on scaffolding, repairing the bays of the nave. “I learned to cast the stones in lead to put them together, a method mostly used in the north of France and on large cathedrals. »

On site, he holds meetings between enthusiasts. “We continue to exchange photos of our projects in progress. » And the privilege of having had the cathedral to himself. “We had the chance to discover unsuspected places. And yet, I haven't explored everything. The next time I visit, there will be people everywhere, I will be just another tourist. »

2. Charente trees in the beams

The sound of the chainsaw and the 12 meter tree crashes. Horte Forest, Eastern Charente, March 2021. Five hundred-year-old oaks are felled to constitute the framework and spire of Notre-Dame, under the eye of Frédéric Béchon, forestry expert. A donation from one of the forest owners, an industrialist from the north of France. “He is the only one to have responded to the call in Charente. We are talking about trees that are over 120 years old. However, between 100 and 150 years old, this is the age when they are very productive in terms of seeds for regeneration,” notes Frédéric Béchon.

On the 12 m³ shot, only 7m³ were used, because the specifications were strict. The logs were transformed into beams in the Joslet sawmill in Chasseneuil. “We won’t recognize our wood when we go to visit it,” smiles realistically, Mathilde Joslet, the manager. “Every day, we saw wood for the restoration of historic buildings. What changes here is the prestige of the site. »

Hennessy also offered 36 oaks, from the Celle forest, in Allier.

3. The icon boards in Montignac

In his Montignac workshop, cabinetmaker Charles-Emmanuel Guise, helped by his son Baudoin, created the icon boards which will occupy one of the chapels of Notre-Dame in the spring (read CL of November 21). At the head of the last French icon wood workshop, he delivered eight supports for iconographic artists as far away as Syria and Lebanon.

4. A Périgord against lightning

He had the most beautiful view of Paris. Perched at 106 meters to place one of the elements of the lightning rod on the cross of the arrow. “It’s exceptional,” praises Anthony Dupuy, from the Pro tech lightning company, in Dordogne. When night falls and I can no longer see what I'm doing, I look up. »And he enjoys it.

A specialist in the installation of lightning rods on historic buildings, at the Louvre, the Pantheon… on the Angoulême Cathedral and the Château de La Rochefoucauld, this is the fourth time that he has reconnected with Notre-Dame. The first was in 2012, for a complete upgrade.

This time, everything had to be done again. Six tips to install. With a challenge: “integrate technology in the most aesthetic way, while respecting standards. I made a few pieces myself that had to be invisible. » What marked him? “Solidarity and tolerance between competing companies or Companions who previously hated each other.” But they learned to know each other and respect each other.

5. The dented rooster taking refuge in the Dordogne

Since 2018, the Périgord company Socra has held the contract for the restoration of the statues of the twelve apostles, which adorn the spire. Miracle of the calendar, they arrived in the workshops of Marsac-sur-L'Isle, for a makeover, only three days before the fire… Joined by the rooster, less lucky. “He was absolutely smashed. He fell more than 40 meters. Very quickly, we were asked not to restore it but to carry out stabilization work. It is now at the city of architecture and heritage,” says Richard Boyer, the boss of this company of 40 employees, around ten of whom have been mobilized.

“The statues had turned green-gray. The metal frame oxidizes very quickly. We worked on the patinas to restore them to their original color, brown. » The stone sculptors and restorers also fashioned new sculptures, identically “based on Viollet-le-Duc’s sketchbooks” and restored the floor of the choir in marble marquetry, bringing the decor back to life. of coat of arms.

6. The wooden decorations of the arrow made in Thouars

A year ago, François Asselin, boss of the company of the same name, based in Thouars, a major player in the restoration of historic monuments, held his breath. It was at the time of the installation of the new rooster, capping the arrow. “We were 96 m on a scaffolding. We placed a parchment in the rooster on which the names of all the craftsmen who participated in the reconstruction are written,” the man who is also national president of the CGPME for a few more weeks, the confederation of SMEs, still shudders.

On this parchment, his twenty carpenters. In the Thouars workshops, they manufactured the carved decorations in oak wood and the tiers on which the statues rest. Pieces up to 8m high, assembled in the cathedral in a meticulous choreography. “There were three companies working on the spire. The innovative side is that we didn't divide the arrow into three, we worked together. Rebuilding it identically, within a limited time frame, was a real challenge. This arrow is a piece of bravery,” exclaims François Asselin. “Notre-Dame has been a vacuum of talent, with global influence. The sign that the know-how still exists and is in the four corners of France. »