The capacity is 9 thousand people. We got to the cathedral on Sunday, Mass was going on. It was amazing to see it firsthand. The Seine flows next to the cathedral.
We arrived by metro, it is better to leave the rented car in the parking lot. There was a goal to see the famous stained glass windows, which were in time before the quarantine and fire. Notre Dame Cathedral was the first on our list of places to visit.
The architecture of that time has always attracted the eldest daughter since childhood, she knew the history of France better than the history of her country. They say the name was given because of its height (the height of the tower is 69 m), the monument was considered at that time as an intermediary between the earthly world and the divine. We have heard the fact that the remains of an aristocrat with a sawn skull were found in a lead sarcophagus from Notre Dame Cathedral. French scientists have opened two lead sarcophagi discovered during excavations at Notre Dame Cathedral. Inside one of them were the remains of Canon Antoine de la Porte, who died in 1710. Also, while exploring Notre Dame Cathedral, someone saw on the wall of one of the towers the Greek word 'ANAGKN, written in the Gothic style, which means rock, fate. Later, the inscription disappeared due to the fact that this wall was either scraped or painted over.
Notre Dame de Paris is a story for young people related to the film about the hunchback and the gypsy. Quasimodo most likely had a real prototype. He had little contact with other workers and was nicknamed Le Bossu (French: hunchback). The cathedral itself was in a deplorable state, and the question of its demolition was raised. In 1831, Victor Hugo published the novel Notre Dame de Paris, writing in a note: "One of my main goals is to inspire the nation with love for our architecture." The restoration was decided to be carried out in 1842. The restoration of the building and sculptures, the replacement of broken statues and the construction of the famous spire lasted 23 years.
The cathedral with its magnificent interior has served for centuries as a venue for royal weddings, imperial coronations and national funerals. In 1302, the States—General, the first parliament of France, gathered there for the first time. Charles VII (1447), who was crowned in Reims, celebrated a thanksgiving service here. And six days before St. Bartholomew's Eve, on August 18, 1572, the wedding of Henry, King of Navarre, and the sister of the French king Marguerite de Valois took place. This is who has read all of Dumas, it will be close to what it is about.
An image of the Last Judgment is placed above the main entrance. Seven statues each support the arches of the entrance (1210). In the center is Christ the Judge. The lower lintel depicts the dead rising from their graves. They were awakened by two angels with trumpets. Among the dead there is one king, one pope, warriors and women (symbolizing the presence at the Last Judgment of all mankind). On the upper tympanum there is Christ and two angels on both sides. The doors are decorated with wrought iron reliefs.
My daughter put tea candles in the Cathedral, they were 2€ each. There were several expositions collected, you can go to any one and put your own candle.
It was noisy for me, a lot of tourists coming and going, talking and gesticulating endlessly loudly.
One visit is more than enough.
We were with our daughter before the fire. Impressions: delight, respect for history and culture, power, beauty....We sailed along the river Seine, we were inside. It is very important that you managed to touch the world masterpiece!
I would say that this cathedral is very pompous. Hordes are walking around, it's impossible to get through!! And the Cathedral is primarily a religion. And they made a mockery of the Divine Temple!
Ladies, especially the squeamish ones, need to take a lot of disinfectants in the form of napkins and diapers). There is, in fact, a problem with toilet stalls, there are simply few of them, and there is Such a "Beauty" there, as in abandoned toilets in the hinterlands of Russia. I'm a seasoned person, but this embarrassment will definitely spoil the romance of the trip for the Ladies…