Nina Droff, edited by Gauthier Delomez 06:05, June 24, 2022

The stained glass windows of Notre-Dame cathedral were not very affected by the fire, but they remained clogged with soot.

Eight workshops of master glassmakers were therefore entrusted with the cleaning of these stained glass windows, in particular the Vincent-Petit factory in Troyes.

Europe 1 went there.

REPORTAGE

The slow reconstruction of the cathedral of Notre-Dame continues, after the fire of April 2019. This Thursday, a new key stage opened: the restoration of the stained glass windows.

They were not badly damaged by the fire, but were soiled by soot and by time.

The Vincent-Petit glass workshop in Troyes is in charge of eight "high bays", large stained glass windows, above the nave and the choir.

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On the table in the heart of the studio, a large stained-glass window, dismembered and blackened with soot, is spread out.

With squinted eyes, Flavie Vincent-Petit, master glassmaker, meticulously cleans the right eye of the prophet Jeremiah represented on the tile, armed with a small stick and a cotton ball.

"It's a very repetitive gesture," she explains at the microphone of Europe 1, "we turn the cotton and gently remove the deposit. Very quickly, the cotton becomes black and the colors return."

Credits: Nina Droff/Europe 1

“We are going to put the light back in Notre-Dame”

After a few cotton strokes, the dull brown of Jeremy's pupils turns into a warm and luminous brown.

Flavie takes this painstaking task very seriously.

"It's painstaking work, a small gesture, but in the end we work for a whole.

This is what is exceptional with the reconstruction of Notre-Dame.

We all pursue a common goal, all the trades weave together, to bring it back to life", enthuses the craftswoman.

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The next step will then be to reassemble the panels, with glue, to reconstitute the stained glass window.

General Georgelin, in charge of the reconstruction, closely follows this stage.

"It's very important. We're going to put light back in Notre-Dame. It will never be as beautiful as when it reopens."

The stained glass windows will be reinstalled in the cathedral in the spring of 2023.