Flèche de la cathédrale d'Amiens, Gothic cathedral spire in Amiens, France

The Flèche de la cathédrale d'Amiens is a pale gray stone spire rising from the transept crossing. Its lower stage is an octagonal tower pierced by pointed-arch openings between vertical shafts, with small figures projecting from the corners; a band of carved tracery separates it from the tapering upper shaft, whose surface carries a diagonal lattice of carved stone and crockets along the edges.

A first wooden spire covered with lead and slate, built in the early 14th century under Bishop Guillaume de Mâcon, burned down after a lightning strike on 15 July 1528. The present spire was rebuilt in the 16th century: carpenter Simon Tanneau of Beauvais led the work, joined by Louis Cardon of Cottenchy, and the timber frame took two years to assemble before being clad in lead. The spire was blessed by Bishop François de Halluin on 22 May 1533, and in 1574 a new lightning strike led Cardinal de Créquy to give 1,500 livres for repairs.

The spire's bells were cast on 3 September 1528 by Guillaume Cachet and blessed by the bishop a few days later. In 1533 a gilded silver reliquary holding fragments of the True Cross and relics of Saint Honoré and Saint Thomas was placed near the top, below the iron cross. A lead plaque still recalls the 1712 lightning fire.

The spire sits over the transept crossing and is seen from the cathedral floor and from the streets around the building; there is no visitor access to its levels. The 1887 copper rooster at the top weighs 10 kg and reaches 118 m. A lead plaque recalls the fire of 16 June 1712, put out by residents and roofers who climbed above the flames.

The gilded copper rooster at the top was installed in 1887, weighs 10 kg and reaches 118 m. A lead plaque on the spire recalls the lightning strike of 16 June 1712, when roofers and a locksmith climbed above the flames and put out the fire.