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FranceTravelogue
4 Notre Dame
4 Notre Dame

One of the most famous cathedrals in the world, Notre Dame is located on the Isle de la Cite in the heart of Paris. Of course you know that it suffered a devastating fire a few years ago, but did you know that, after having been built during the 12th and 13th centuries and surviving intact for hundreds of years, it suffered significant damage during the French Revolution and was in very poor condition afterward until attention was brought to it by Victor Hugo’s novel “Notre-Dame de Paris”, and a major restoration effort was undertaken? This effort, supervised by the famous French architect Violet-le-Duc, was completed in the mid 1800’s giving us the building we see today, or at least did up to the fire!

The picture above was taken after I saw an organ recital in the Cathedral a few years ago. The organ had just finished undergoing a multi-year refurbishment at the time. While it was not seriously damaged in the fire, it needs to be refurbished all over again!

Likewise, the Rose Window (next) was not seriously damaged, but, boy, does it need a serious window washing!