Restored Notre-Dame reopens Five-and-a-half years after being gutted by fire, the Gothic masterpiece reopens following a $750 million restoration, involving 250 companies and hundreds of experts and artisans PARIS FRANCE Seine 4km 2.5 miles Apr 15, 2019: Fire ravages Notre-Dame Golden rooster ROOF New wood framework, known as “The Forest”, made from 1,200 historic oak trees and restored using medieval timber techniques Thermal cameras and timber dampening system integrated to put out fires. Fireproof trusses divide roof into sections to prevent flames spreading SPIRE Cathedral’s 96-metre-high spire, added in 19th century by architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc and destroyed in fire, faithfully recreated Crowned by gilded rooster containing religious relics, including piece from Crown of Thorns, alongside scroll listing 2,000 people who worked on renovation Spire’s wooden frame made of 1,000 individual parts coated in watertight polyethylene and covered in fine layer of lead Copper statues, removed for restoration just before fire hit, treated to give original dark brown patina WALLS AND VAULTS More than 42,000 sq m of stone restored using innovative latex peels to strip away centuries of grime without causing damage True colour of pale Lutetian limestone – named after Roman word for Paris, Lutecia – re-established ALTARS Most famous sculptures – such as The Vow of Louis XIII (below) – survived unscathed but had to be cleaned and given minor repairs Chequerboard floor relaid and new furniture installed Apse Grand Organ Nave Choir Altar Oak frame before being lined with lead Spire recreated using ancient technique of “scribing” where structure is fitted together in workshop using intricate pencilled drawings as template ORGAN Spared from flames, but coated in lead dust, its 8,000 pipes had to be painstakingly disassembled, cleaned and put back in place Sixteen bellows replaced using original materials – sheepskin and animal glue WINDOWS Famed stained-glass windows cleaned and restored by master glassmakers and locksmiths from across France, along with workers from Cologne, Germany GARGOYLES AND CHIMERAS Damaged by centuries of pollution and high-pressure hoses used to fight fire, repaired and in some cases re-made WHAT NEXT? Renovation work is set to continue on outside walls of apse and sacristy. There are also plans to redesign esplanade and to create museum in neighbouring Hôtel-Dieu hospital Sources: Rebâtir Notre-Dame de Paris, AP, BBC, Reuters Pictures: Getty Images, Newscom, Priscille Leroy © GRAPHIC NEWS