Notre-Dame de Paris, Catholic cathedral on Île de la Cité, Paris, France
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris is a Catholic cathedral on Île de la Cité in Paris, France. Its west front has two flat-topped towers with tall louvred arched openings, a row of slender columns, a large rose window between two smaller arched windows, and a band of carved standing figures above three pointed portals. A tall spire rises over the crossing, and flying buttresses line the long roof.
Construction began in 1163 under Bishop Maurice de Sully on the site of an earlier church, and the main work was mostly finished by around 1260. The building was damaged during the French Revolution in the 1790s, when much of its religious imagery was broken or removed. In the 19th century, a long restoration led by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc repaired the stones and rebuilt the spire. A fire in April 2019 destroyed the wooden roof frame and the central spire again.
The west front's three doorways carry carved scenes: the central Last Judgment portal shows angels and saints, and the Gallery of Kings above holds figures of the kings of Judah, beheaded in the Revolution and restored in the 19th century. The south tower hangs the bell Emmanuel; the north tower holds the smaller bells.
The cathedral reopened on 7–8 December 2024 after the 2019 fire, and the Crown of Thorns returned on 13 December 2024. The nearest metro stations are Cité and Saint-Michel. Climbing the towers requires a separate reservation, and security checks at the entrance mean allowing extra time.
The cathedral holds three pipe organs; the great organ has 8,000 pipes across 115 stops, with parts dating to the 15th century and major additions by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll in the 19th century. It survived the 2019 fire without major damage but was dismantled and cleaned during the restoration.
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