CATHEDRAL NOTRE DAME DE PARIS
Gothic Arches, Gargoyles and Quasimodo
It is maybe
the most famous church in the world - or at least cathedral - (St
Peters at the Vatican is a Basilica and gets more TV coverage). Though
there are virtually hundreds, if not thousands of churches
of
the
same name – Our Lady - in French, it is the gothic cathedral of
flying buttresses and gargoyles in the center of Paris which comes to
mind with the name Notre Dame. Neither the largest nor most historically
important of cathedrals, its setting on an island in the middle of the
Seine River, the elegance of the architectural arches supporting the
high walls and the bristling figures of demons and animals, the gargoyles,
used to decoratively pour boiling oil down onto her enemies have inspired
painters, photographers, authors and tourists alike.
The
Cathedral Notre Dame de Paris perhaps gained much of its recognition
from the 1831 novel of tragic romance by Victor Hugo, The Hunchback of
Notre Dame, telling the story of the deformed bell-ringer of the church,
Quasimodo, who fell in love with the beautiful gypsy, Esmeralda. Set
in the middle-ages of 1482 when Quasimodo is crowned the Pope of Fools
during the Fesitval of Fools when for a day the roles of society were
reversed. A story of innocent beauty, an ugly but pure and mistreated
soul and a lustful priest. The bell-ringer’s guardian, Frollo,
the Archdeacon of the cathedral, orders Quasimodo to kidnap the girl
who is under sentence
of death, bringing the Paris throng to assault the sanctuary of the church,
ending in the hunchback shoving his nemesis from the bell towers, and
himself found in common grave with his arms wrapped around the body the
hanged gypsy girl, both turning to dust.
The structure
of the great cathedral played as much a role in the epic story as the
romance and tragic conflicts
of its characters. Victor Hugo argued that the great architecture of
the gothic age of the great churches which told the story of Christianity
and the themes of the church would be supplanted by the invention of
the printing press, with moveable type replacing the eloquent art and
eternal beauty of the buildings (see Gutenberg Museum Mainz).
The Notre Dame Cathedral was first begun construction in 1163 on order
of the new Bishop of Paris, Maurice de Sully, to replace an earlier
4th Century cathedral, and completed by 1345, during the great rise
of the “gothic” style.
It was one of the first of the great churches to be built with the exterior
wall support, the flying buttress, which allowed the walls to gain a
great height with lighter and more airy wall thickness than the earlier “romanesque”,
allowing for the stained glass windows. The buttress concept developed
during the building of the church, added to the design after construction
had begun. The interior of the Notre Dame cathedral is rather stark,
with much of the religious statuary, tombs and paintings destroyed, first
by Protestant Hugenots in the 16th Century and at the height of the French
Revolution when many of the statues of saints thought to be kings were
beheaded, and the Catholic cathedral used as a food storage warehouse.
Unlike many of the other gothic cathedrals of Europe, the elegant medieval
stained glass windows of Notre Dame remain intact, removed during the
Second World War to avoid bombing which never really came.
While there
are no royal tombs left at the Notre Dame cathedral, the crown of thorns
from
Christ’s crucifixion is reputedly held in
a reliquary in the Treasury and the Cathedral of Notre Dame played a
role in the Hundred Years War, with the coronation of England’s
King Henry VI as King of France (which lasted about as long as the ceremony),
and the marriage of Mary Queen of Scots, entombed across the channel
in England’s gothic royal church (see Westminster
Abbey London). In
the 1920s Joan of Arc was canonized as a saint at Notre Dame.
The church designs can be seen as different levels of the west front
and towers as the design changed with four different construction periods
with the rose window from the 13th Century. Look for the saints depicted
in statuary along the front façade with crowns and John the Baptist
holding his severed head in his hand, though still a living saint. In
the 19th Century a restoration project by and Eugène Viollet-le-Duc
added chimera and the tall filigree fleche spire in the center of the
roof with climbing figures. The transept portals depict scenes from the
life of St Stephen above the south door and the infancy of Jesus and
story of Theophilus in the pointed gothic arch of the north door entrance.
The
Cathedral de Notre Dame de Paris is located on the south eastward end
of the Île de la Cité (Island of the City), which divides
the River Seine, the literal center of Paris, where the dark ages medieval
city could take sanctuary from invaders. When road distances say there
are so far from Paris they mean from the square in front of Notre Dame.
Taking up most of the other half of the island is the Palace of Justice.
Seine River cruise boats motor under the Pont Neuf and through the walled
narrows between the island and the left bank of the Seine (the southern
bank) of the 4th arrondisement, and throngs of tourist fill the plaza
(the Parvis) in front of the church on sunny days (see Day Trip to Paris from London). Underneath the plaza
are excavations of early foundations of the city, from the Celtic settlement
and the Roman city which replaced it. The excavations can be explored
with which a new tour access - The Archeological Crypt of Notre Dame
Square, included with the Paris Pass.
Visiting Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris
The cathedral is open every day of the year from 8am to 6:45pm - 7:15pm
on Saturday and Sunday. Entrance is free. The crowds can depends entirely
on the time of day and the weather, sometimes with a line, often not.
The cathedral bell towers can be toured through a separate entrance outside
the north tower. The tower visit leads up through the west facing front
façade of the cathedral dating from the 13th Century with a close
up look at the gargoyles and chimera as well as the great 13 ton Emmanuel
Bell which tolled to announce the city’s liberation in 1944. The
towers include a climb up 387 steps to the top of the south tower for
magnificent views of the city. The Notre Dame towers and Cathedral Treasury
are administered by the France Monument Commission. Admission to the
towers is €8 for adults, students and seniors €5 with children
under 18 free when with adults.
Before
or after exploring the Notre Dame cathedral, cross the bridge to the
south to stroll along the Rive Gauche. Amid the souvenir vendors
of miniature Eiffel Towers and poster tributes to Jim Morrison, where
the Seine cruise boats dock (see Seine River Cruises), is the most
recognizable photogenic angle of the cathedral across the river. When
the weather’s
good in the late afternoon or evening enjoy a drink or a meal with a
view
of river
and the glorious church lit by the setting sun at the Bar Terrasse. Or
to celebrate the fictional hunchback which made it famous, head to the
north
to the
Quasimodo
Café for
a cappuccino or martini toast to tortured unrequited love. © Bargain
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Notre Dame Cathedral
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