French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday gave his blessing to a faithful reconstruction of the spire of the fire-damaged Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, in a change of heart after previously calling for a “contemporary” touch.
The decision by Macron means that the 19th-century gothic spire, which crashed to the ground during a blaze in April last year, would now be rebuilt to its former glory, after months of debate.
The gothic steeple, designed by French architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc, took a large section of the cathedral’s roof with it as a blaze tore through the rafters of the 13th-century church.
Photo: AFP
Macron, who wants the restoration to be completed at breakneck speed in time for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, had indicated in the aftermath of the disaster that he wanted a “contemporary gesture.”
However, the Elysee said that he now backs the cathedral’s chief architect, Philippe Villeneuve, in wanting the spire to be rebuilt as it was.
“The president trusts the experts and approved the main outlines of the project presented by the chief architect, which would reconstruct the spire identically,” it said.
French Minister of Culture Roselyne Bachelot had earlier told French radio: “There is a large consensus in public opinion and among those deciding” for the 96m spire to be rebuilt as it was.
The reconstruction process has been plagued by delays due to bad weather, concerns over lead pollution, and the COVID-19 crisis.
In early June, workers began the delicate task of removing tonnes of metal scaffolding that melted together during the fire, while the reconstruction proper is only to start in January next year.
In November last year, the army general that Macron put in charge of the reconstructive effort, Jean-Louis Georgelin, had a heated public exchange with head architect Villeneuve.
Georgelin caused audible gasps in a meeting of the French National Assembly’s Cultural Affairs Committee when he said that Villeneuve should “shut his mouth.”
Last week, Georgelin said that the delicate task of removing the twisted and molten scaffolding around the cathedral should be finished by the end of September.
The wooden roof of the cathedral caught fire during restoration work, sparking a vast outpouring of emotion — and donations for its rebuilding — from around the world.
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