Photos show Notre-Dame restoration work after devastating 2019 fire - a year before planned reopening

Photos show Notre-Dame restoration work after devastating 2019 fire – a year before planned reopening

French President Emmanuel Macron has visited Notre-Dame Cathedral to mark one year until its scheduled reopening.

The Paris landmark has been closed to the public since April 2019, when a blaze burned through its roof and spire.

As rebuilding and restoration works have taken place, Mr Macron has visited frequently to highlight the progress.

Photos from his latest visit, his sixth since the fire, show huge oak beams that have been lifted skyward so the cathedral can be re-roofed.

Mr Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron went up the spire, which is being reconstructed from its previous design by the 19th century French architect Viollet-le-Duc.

The 96-metre spire has been rebuilt using centuries-old wood from a former royal forest.

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It will soon be topped with a cross and rooster, restoring an emotional symbol of French heritage.

Photographs taken from outside the cathedral show that the cross is nearly ready to be unveiled.

Mr Macron told reporters: “Since April 2019, the entire nation has been rebuilding.

“And it’s very moving to be here a year before. You can see the extraordinary progress of the work on this nave, the choir and the frames and the spire.”

Mr Macron also paid tribute to General Jean-Louis Georgelin, who oversaw Notre-Dame‘s reconstruction and died in August.

The French president helped as General Georgelin’s name was inscribed in the wood of the spire, in honour of his contribution to the cathedral.

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