Notre-Dame Cathedral - After the Fire

The horrible fire that damaged Notre-Dame was followed by a debate as to whether the cathedral should be restored as it was or modernized… Finally, our current President wisely opted to respect the original design.

In truth, Notre-Dame had already undergone quite a radical restoration in 1857 under the supervision of Architect Extraordinaire Viollet-Le-Duc. By then, Notre-Dame was already seven centuries old and had the scars to prove it! The Architect rolled up his sleeves and devoted nearly ten years of his life to making the gothic cathedral the pride of Paris once again.

Viollet-Le-Duc actually added the famous gargoyles which Notre-Dame never had before and replaced the old and damaged spire with a new and much taller one. At that time, some critics felt Viollet-Le-Duc was taking too much freedom with the restoration. The cheeky Architect also added on the roof, the figure of a saint with his own features! Could one interpret his statue surviving the fire as a divine approval of the Architect's work?