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The Notre Dame de Paris cathedral will recover its spire and most likely this is identical to the spire that collapsed on April 15, 2019 during the spectacular fire of this jewel of the Gothic.

There is "a broad consensus" both in French public opinion and among those responsible for making this decision to rebuild the needle "identical" to the one built in the 19th century by the architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, the new minister said Thursday. French Culture, Roselyne Bachelot.

The National Commission for Heritage and Architecture (CNPA), an advisory commission, meets today to decide on the reconstruction of Notre Dame de Paris. In addition to the question of the spire, the experts will address during this meeting the reconstruction of the roof and its framework, which before the accident was made of wood .

The minister believes that it will finally be President Emmanuel Macron who will make the decision on the reconstruction of the spire of this Gothic cathedral located in the heart of Paris.

Following the fire, a passionate debate ensued in France over whether the needle should be rebuilt identically to the one Viollet-le-Duc designed, revert to the original 13th century design, or build a completely new needle. There was even talk of convening an international architectural competition to rebuild the spire of Notre Dame de Paris.

President Emmanuel Macron, who promised after the fire that Notre Dame would be "more beautiful" than before after the reconstruction, was initially in favor of "giving a contemporary architectural gesture to the cathedral", because the destroyed spire was not the original . Instead, the architect responsible for the works, Philippe Villeneuve, and other experts opted to rebuild it identical to that of Viollet-le-Duc.

The first spire was built in 1250 and dismantled between 1786 and 1792 because, given its poor condition, it was feared that it would collapse. Viollet-le-Duc, responsible for the restoration of the cathedral in the 19th century, built on a new spire - made of 750-ton wood and lead and 93 meters above the ground - to crown Notre Dame.

The base of the spire was surrounded by copper statues representing the twelve apostles and by the symbols of the four evangelists. The statue of Saint Thomas, looking up at the sky, had the face of Viollet-le-Duc, which many considered a nod to the architect who was contemplating his work.

Both the statues of the apostles and the rooster with relics crowned by the arrow were saved from the fire. The statues had been dismantled a few days before for restoration. And the rooster - which contained an apex of the Crown of Thorns, a relic of San Dionisio and another of Santa Genoveva - was miraculously recovered from the rubble , although it was slightly dented.

The restoration works of Notre Dame de Paris have not yet started. Throughout this summer the dismantling of the scaffolding that surrounded the cathedral will take place. The scaffolding was severely damaged in the fire and threatens the entire structure should it collapse. The 40,000 pieces that form it were welded together by fire and must be cut by hand for disassembly. This delicate operation is expected to end in late September.

Macron set himself the ambitious goal of restoring Notre Dame in five years , just in time for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

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  • Paris
  • Notre dame
  • Architecture
  • history
  • Emmanuel Macron

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