for over 850 years nraam deari has stood as more than just a beautiful cathedral it's a symbol deeply ingrained in France's history and culture located in the center of Paris on the IL de this architectural Marvel has witnessed centuries of ups and downs making it a beloved Landmark globally when you look at it you can see how its walls hold onto history now let's take a step back and look at the history of how nraam was built construction of nraam began in 1163 during the Gothic era under the reign of King Louis iith the construction
was completed in 1345 making the construction period about 182 years with its impressive facade intricate flying buttresses and stunning stained glass windows the cathedral showcased the architectural Brilliance of its time one cannot imagined that Architects and laborers worked together and came up with this brilliant piece of architecture together over the years it played host to significant events such as coronations Royal weddings and national celebrations Victor Hugo's renowned novel The Hunchback of nraam further contributed to its Global Fame but you know how all good things come to an end similar is the case of the once
Majestic nraam throughout the years nraam has faced damage for several reasons according to the cathedral's website there was once a point where notredam was in a stage of disrepair and close to the point of demolishing however Napoleon crowned Emperor inside the cathedral in 1804 saved it the cathedral even faced threats during World War II so the stained glass rose window had to be removed until the wars end but the damage that was to come in 2019 was much bigger than any previous ones in April 2019 a fire swept through nraam destroying its roof and iconic
Spire while causing substantial damage the world watched in shock as this tragedy took place prompting an international outpouring of grief and support French president Emanuel macron made a promise to rebuild notredam emphasizing its integral role in the country's Soul history and literature on that sad evening in April 2019 nraam de par went through something incredibly heartbreaking a massive fire that changed its iconic look forever around 6:18 p.m. Flames broke out in the Attic quickly destroying its old wooden beams and delicate craftsmanship the Eerie glow of the fire painted a strange picture over the familiar Parisian
Landmark the worst moment hit at 7:50 p.m. when notra Dam's tall Spire A Silent Witness to centuries of History gave in to the fierce fire the collapse of this important piece of architecture happened in front of the world showing the loss of something truly special it's worth mentioning that the Spire the standout part of notra Dam's look wasn't part of the original building in the 12th century it was added during a restoration in the 19th century carrying its own historical significance as a symbol of the cathedral's enduring Spirit watching this cultural icon burn had a
deep emotional impact images seen worldwide showed the cathedral covered in Flames against the Paris night sky the shared shock and sadness emphasized how much nraam meant to the people both culturally and emotionally but in the midst of all the destruction there was a bit of Hope notrad Dam's famous stained glass windows survived these really old artworks with their intricate designs made it through the fire standing strong in the midst of the ashes in in fact the iconic stained glass rose window also stayed safe throughout this incident the stained glass windows became a symbol of naam's
ability to endure tough times offering a bit of Hope for its eventual recovery the thing is you can fix concrete walls and all the other stuff at this time but those stained glass windows were not easy to restore and it was like a sign from the skies that there is something that people can still do about it to fix the architecture apart from the spire the roof also faced significant damage the upper walls of the cathedral were also destroyed however the interior was saved from massive destruction due to the vaulted Stone ceiling which held on
to the burning roof as it collapsed most of the artwork and religious relics were also removed from the cathedral in time but some still suffered from smoke damage While others were destroyed even though there were no casualties three workers got injured while trying to save anything in the cathedral they could but since the damage was already done the challenge now was to restore it and for this Emanuel macron set a 5-year deadline now that we're talking about the Reconstruction let's start with the Spire itself reconstructing nram Spire was a significant engineering challenge given its historical
and non-original nature while rebuilding the Spire the focus was on keeping it as identical as possible to the one designed in the 19th century this original version was designed by the famous architect Eugene VI luk and doing so was a challenge this also meant that the material used was similar to the original one including wood for roofing and stone for other parts not to mention this rebuilding wasn't just handed over to anybody that came forward instead it involved the expertise of Chief architects of historical monuments The Advisory Council that handles important restoration projects in France
and other historic building experts at the moment the removal of the burn scaffolding that surrounded the Spire is in process while the timber framework for the Nave and choir is also being prepared with great care for future installation around 300 tons of melted scaffolding have to be removed and it requires precise execution to prevent further instability however the engineers involved imployed innovative solutions including Advanced bracing techniques to secure the structure during the initial phase pH successfully avoiding potential collapse risks the old Golden Rooster that called the top of the Spire its home for a year
was damaged in the fire even though it was saved it was still not usable so the Spire will get a new Golden Rooster this new rooster designed to resemble a phoenix as a symbol of the endurance and Resurrection represents the broader theme of notrad Dam's recovery from the fire the cathedral Vault specifically the transcept crossing the choir and the naay vaults are also being repaired using medieval techniques to restore their original form and structure now if we talk about the cross-shaped base it has already been set in place and the Spire is also installed so
it's safe to say that the process is almost complete apart from that the workers achieved another significant Milestone by restoring the grand organ as it's one of the central pieces of the cathedral's musical Heritage the organ Builders replaced wind chests and connected them to the con Soul this process will allow the proper manual functioning of the grand organ selecting materials for the restoration involved a delicate balance between historical authenticity and modern structural requirements the engineers opted for a combination of traditional and contemporary materials to ensure durability while respecting the cathedral's architectural Integrity materials like wood
and stone was sourced from the same areas as the ones used in the original construction of the building along with that this time the restoration required extra steps to help avoid any future incidents that could damage the building the material selection for restoration involved several factors including historical authenticity availability and structural Integrity not only did it require original materials for the roofing but also a careful selection of the Timber to match the quality and dimensions of the original 1300 trees that were harvested over a decade not to mention this restoration isn't all about building the
cathedral again it also required significant scientific research with more than 170 Scholars studying and analyzing different aspects of the cathedral including the materials sculpture ornamentation and civil engineering while on the topic we must not ignore the Innovative 3D scanning and modeling incorporated into the restoration process this new technology played a major role in the restoration of notredam 3D scanning and modeling helped Engineers find accurate solutions to the challenges that blocked their way while working on the cathedral laser scanning technology is used to create a detailed 3D model of a building doing this to the cathedral
allowed the engineers to capture as many data points as possible to create a water type mesh to be used to rebuild the building virtually this technology helped scan the whole building and the stones which made it possible to reconstruct the stone rar that once supported the cathedral's archers so far the 3D scanning and modeling technology has helped the experts understand the damage that the cathedral sustained in the 2019 fire so it's safe to say that with this technology they have found solutions for all issues related to the restoration while the structural restoration is in process
the idea is to bring Beauty to the areas surrounding the cathedral as well this beautifying process will be carried out while keeping clim climate change in mind such as planting trees for shade and introducing water features to reduce heat as per the reports the total cost required to rebuild nraam is about $767 million but the good thing is that over $900 million have already been raised in donations from over 340,000 donors in 150 countries apart from donating money different countries and organizations have offered help in rebuilding the cathedral as well on April 15 2020 Germany
came forward and offered to rebuild some of the large celester Windows located far above I level and on April 18 Ubisoft the French game developer and publisher also offered to provide about 5,000 hours worth of research about the building structure This research was actually previously done in order to recreate the cathedral in the 2014 video game Assassin's Creed Unity following the nraam fire the French government promptly committed a a substantial amount of funds for the restoration private donors particularly influential French billionaires and corporations played a crucial role in funding notra Dam's restoration notable contributors like
Louis Vuitton L'Oreal apple and Disney made significant donations each donor had a unique connection to the cathedral whether driven by cultural appreciation corporate responsibility or personal history while the primary financial support Came From Within France the International Community also expressed solidarity with the restoration effort various countries and organizations recognized the global importance of nraam contributing to the collective effort to preserve this iconic cultural heritage Beyond National borders but that wasn't all in 2022 about eight workshops of masterg glass makers and locksmiths started the process of cleaning and restoring the cathedral's glass windows Germany's Colonial Cathedral
also joined the effort and they restored four stain glass windows rebuilding nraam is a big and detailed job but there's been a lot of progress as of 2023 about 1,000 workers are working on the project this includes both on-site and specialized workshops across France not just that according to the latest reports the tall spy has been rebuilt marking a crucial step in fixing things the government is still working on taking down the scaffolding showing off parts of the fixed up front and carefully fixing up important parts like vaults strong walls and colorful Windows even though
there might be some unexpected problems the aim is to finish everything by December 8th 2024 but then again it's important to note that while the cathedral plans to reopen for church services and tourist visits in December 2024 the full restoration will not be complete until 2025 report suggest that it can take 15 to 20 years to restore it to its original form fully rebuilding nraam isn't just about fixing a building it's about all of us deciding to keep our history alive and build something great again as we keep going nraam shows us that we can
be strong and creative and make amazing things that last a really long time to wrap things up fixing rraam is more than just a construction project it's a sign of strength creativity and determination to keep something special alive but hey this story isn't over yet we've got more episodes coming your way we'll get into the nitty-gritty details share stories about the people involved and explore the cool techniques to make this reconstruction happen so stick around for more thanks a bunch for joining us if you liked what you heard don't forget to hit like subscribe and
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