WatchThe renaissance of Notre-Dame Cathedral: Behind the scenes of a monumental restoration Few opportunities existed before the fire to study the prestigious religious building so closely.
Notre-Dame was considered as a historical monument, not an archaeological site,” said Dorothée Chaoui-Derieux, the chief heritage curator who has coordinated all the archaeological operations at Notre-Dame decreed by the State since 2019.
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Read moreMacron takes world on first tour inside Paris’s restored Notre-Dame cathedral During the work, the rubble left after the fire was also carefully collected and inventoried.
“This is considered as archaeological remains which are now accessible to the scientific community,” said Chaoui-Derieux.
At the Musée de Cluny, a museum of medieval art in Paris, visitors can ponder almost ten centuries of history through artifacts on display, including busts of the crucified face of Christ and the torso of a man wearing a tunic. Approximately thirty pieces from the rood screen, a stone tribune with statues, of Notre-Dame Cathedral are on display for the first time. Between the nave, where the faithful were seated, and the choir, the tribune created an enclosure.
When Séverine Lepape, the director of the museum, unveiled the sculptures, which date back to 1230, she said, “We thought these elements had been lost forever.”.
“It’s not possible.”.
Following the April 2019 fire, the remains were discovered during excavations done before the cathedral was rebuilt.
Approximately fifteen of the medieval sculptures were discovered during 19th-century renovations overseen by French architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1879).
700 pieces, including some with well-preserved polychrome traces, were discovered during recent excavations conducted after the 2019 fire. “The colored ornamentation on the surface is called polychromy. Damien Berné, curator of the exhibition Making Stones Speak, stated, “It tells us what people saw when they were confronted with these sculptures before the application of colors disappeared.”. The Medieval Sculptures at Notre Dame, which closes on March 16, 2025.
Reds, blues, ochres, and golds are among the delicate slivers of color that adorn these delicate artifacts. Only once every hundred years does a discovery like the rood screen come along. In the French National Institute for Preventative Archaeological Research (INRAP), archaeologist Christophe Besnier stated, “We are thrilled when we discover a sculpture from the 13th century, but it’s unthinkable when we discover 1,000.”. The lead archeologist for the excavation of Notre-Dame’s transept crossing in February 2022 added, “I feel privileged.”.
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There weren’t many chances to examine the esteemed religious structure in such detail prior to the fire. The architect documented observations in his journal during the drastic restoration work that Viollet-le-Duc oversaw starting in 1843. However, Théodore Vacquer did not begin an excavation campaign on the eastern edge beneath the square in front of Notre-Dame until 1847. In the 1960s, a parking lot beneath the square was built, which also made it possible to find architectural remnants and build a crypt to house and exhibit them.
“Aside from the square, the area was largely unknown from an archaeological perspective. The chief heritage curator, Dorothée Chaoui-Derieux, who has been in charge of all the archaeological operations at Notre-Dame that the State has mandated since 2019, stated that the church was regarded as a historical monument rather than an archaeological site. She continued, “As part of this project, we have conducted about 20 diagnostic or excavation operations, which have uncovered nearly 2,000 years of history.”.
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reconstructing 2,000 years of history.
Various occupations were layered on top of each other for centuries. The earliest levels go all the way back to early antiquity. In the center of the cathedral, in the Soufflot cellar, a house dating back to the first century was discovered at a depth of 3:50 meters. Under the square of the cathedral, remains of Low Roman Empire dwellings and crafts were found.
Read more Five Years After the Fire: A Monument to Resilience at Notre-Dame.
When the Carolingian family of aristocrats ruled much of western Europe from 750 to 887, the excavations also allowed for the identification of relics from the Middle Ages before the cathedral was built, including a sizable Carolingian structure.
The cathedral’s foundations were also discovered for the first time. “From the first century to our time, this truly shows the amount of activity on the site,” Christophe Besnier said. “We have gathered hints from practically every era. In reference to the island on the Seine where the cathedral is located, he stated, “On this portion of the Île de la Cité, we will be able to reconstruct more than 2,000 years of history.”.
According to Besnier, every excavation is different. He declined to assign a rating to the discoveries, even though the rood screen discovery was an extraordinary discovery. “Gallic coins from the end of the first century BC were just as moving to find in the Soufflot cellar,” Besnier said.
“Yes,” Chaoui-Derieux said. He stated that the findings of Merovingian layers on the south side of the cathedral and the 30-meter-long Carolingian building are equally significant from a scientific perspective, even though they may not be as spectacular.
A “data mine.”.
In French media, the 2022 discovery of two coffins beneath Notre-Dame’s nave received a lot of attention.
Canon Antoine de La Porte’s coffin’s epitaph allowed for his identification, but the identity of the other occupant was still unknown.
Analysis conducted at the Toulouse University Hospital’s Forensic Institute in September led archaeologist Éric Crubézy to finally declare that it might be the poet Joachim du Bellay, who was interred in the cathedral in the 16th century.
But there are still questions, Chaoui-Derieux said. “The research has not yet been completed. Other indications imply that this is not Joachim du Bellay but rather someone else. “..”.
The secrets of Notre-Dame are not yet complete. Teams of archaeologists are still working hard even after the restoration project is finished. “The task is not finished yet. Over the next two to three years, significant analyses still need to be completed, Besnier stated. There is currently a year-long endeavor to stabilize all of the rood screen’s fragments and its polychromy. A three-dimensional reconstruction will also result from the discovery.
Read more: Macron gives the world its first tour inside the restored Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris.
Along with the work, the debris left over from the fire was meticulously gathered and accounted for. “The scientific community now has access to these archaeological remains,” Chaoui-Derieux stated. “Experts in metal, stone, and wood visit our reserves to collect samples of these materials. They will be able to provide us with more information, particularly regarding the framework’s construction or the various restoration stages. It is an authentic data source. “..”.
Research will have been indirectly advanced by the fire that destroyed the cathedral and rocked the world, according to Chaoui-Derieux. Although it is clear that nobody would have desired this catastrophe, we looked for the bright side after it occurred. This tragedy contributed to the expansion of our knowledge. “..”.
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(The French original was translated by Sonya Ciesnik. ).
