Michael Kimmelman

They were doing all sorts of stuff. They were laying down sheets of lead. They were erecting the spire. And most interestingly to me, they were rebuilding the rafters, this complex of beams.

They were doing all sorts of stuff. They were laying down sheets of lead. They were erecting the spire. And most interestingly to me, they were rebuilding the rafters, this complex of beams.

Exactly.

Exactly.

So I go through this, basically a hole in the roof, and enter this forest of reconstructed rafters. Very beautiful, these trusses that had been rebuilt. And, you know, it was providential. What do you mean? Well, before the fire... The cathedral was in disrepair. The roof was leaking. Some of that wood was rotting.

So I go through this, basically a hole in the roof, and enter this forest of reconstructed rafters. Very beautiful, these trusses that had been rebuilt. And, you know, it was providential. What do you mean? Well, before the fire... The cathedral was in disrepair. The roof was leaking. Some of that wood was rotting.

Repairs had started on the cathedral, but also there were some people who tried to document the cathedral. There were a couple of French architects who'd gone up into the rafters and the spire and recorded every detail of what there was down to the finest degree. Yeah.

Repairs had started on the cathedral, but also there were some people who tried to document the cathedral. There were a couple of French architects who'd gone up into the rafters and the spire and recorded every detail of what there was down to the finest degree. Yeah.

And there was a Belgian scholar who had used LIDAR to do a digital scan of the cathedral from all different sorts of points and gathered like a billion points of data. It was amazing, which gave the workers a map, effectively, of the cathedral down to the width of a pencil eraser. So the reconstruction could be extraordinarily faithful. What I learned from the workers was that each—

And there was a Belgian scholar who had used LIDAR to do a digital scan of the cathedral from all different sorts of points and gathered like a billion points of data. It was amazing, which gave the workers a map, effectively, of the cathedral down to the width of a pencil eraser. So the reconstruction could be extraordinarily faithful. What I learned from the workers was that each—

tree that had been cut down in forests across France had been specifically chosen to match the peculiarities of the beam that it would replace, the medieval beam, which had been faithfully studied before.

tree that had been cut down in forests across France had been specifically chosen to match the peculiarities of the beam that it would replace, the medieval beam, which had been faithfully studied before.

Exactly. And then the carpenters today, using the same sort of old hand tools... made sure that the contours of that beam, down to all sorts of peculiarities in the Middle Ages, were exactly the same. And this wasn't just for authenticity's sake.

Exactly. And then the carpenters today, using the same sort of old hand tools... made sure that the contours of that beam, down to all sorts of peculiarities in the Middle Ages, were exactly the same. And this wasn't just for authenticity's sake.

Yeah, it's incredible, really, because you're reviving ancient techniques.

Yeah, it's incredible, really, because you're reviving ancient techniques.

This was because the previous beams had lasted for 800 years. Huh. And then they had tattooed back into it the medieval carpenter's original mark. And if there had been beams that had been reconstructed in the 19th century, they added those back too.

This was because the previous beams had lasted for 800 years. Huh. And then they had tattooed back into it the medieval carpenter's original mark. And if there had been beams that had been reconstructed in the 19th century, they added those back too.

Yeah. It was especially extraordinary because not just was it faithful, but... It was something that the public will not see. So it wasn't done for tourists. It was about something else. It was devotional.

Yeah. It was especially extraordinary because not just was it faithful, but... It was something that the public will not see. So it wasn't done for tourists. It was about something else. It was devotional.