The fire at Notre-Dame de Paris is an event that has traumatized many French people, and even beyond our borders. Nearly three years after the fall of its famous spire, it is about to be rebuilt. But during preliminary excavations, surprising discoveries were made.
The spire of Notre-Dame: reconstruction work coming soon
Between April 15 and 16, 2019, a particularly impressive event occurred in the French capital: a fire broke out at Notre-Dame de Paris. Burning for nearly fifteen hours, it ravaged the famous monument, so much so that its framework, its transept, its nave and above all its spire were destroyed. If in the meantime, a pandemic whose name will not be mentioned has come to upset our daily lives and made it possible to somewhat forget this event, the reconstruction of the cathedral was still awaited. The President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, had indeed indicated to want to rebuild the entire cathedral identically within five years.
Construction work on the spire should finally begin within a few weeks. But before that, preliminary excavations must take place. Started at the beginning of February, these finally led to particularly interesting discoveries, as revealed on Monday by the Minister of Culture Roselyne Bachelot. But what exactly are these discoveries?
Remains of a “remarkable scientific quality”
It is at the crossing of the transept of the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris that impressive discoveries have been made. Teams from the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) in charge of archaeological excavations have indeed discovered several graves. Among them, an anthropomorphic sarcophagus all in lead described as “integrally preserved”. According to initial estimates, this would date from the 14th century at the latest and would probably contain the body of a high dignitary.
But this is not the only discovery made by archaeologists, since it is a whole pit belonging to the old rood screen which overlooked the Altar of Notre-Dame, destroyed at the beginning of the 18th century, which would have been found. While waiting for more information following various expert appraisals, the Ministry of Culture is already pleased with these discoveries of a “remarkable scientific quality”. This specifies that all “rests on levels of occupation dated from the 14th century, which are installed on floors that may date back to the beginning of the 13th century.
#PressRelease | A preventive archaeological excavation operation at the crossing of the transept of Notre-Dame de Paris has brought to light fragments of the old rood screen and a lead sarcophagus probably dating from the 14th century.
https://t.co/5ZdOjpAUtc pic.twitter.com/YGkyuKGJUuMarch 14, 2022
If everything goes as planned and new discoveries do not disrupt the program, the preventive archaeological excavations should end on March 25, shortly before the start of reconstruction work on the spire of Notre-Dame. Remember in passing that the fire of the cathedral will have the right to a Netflix series soon.
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
