Notre Dame’s fire-ravaged roof rebuilt using medieval techniques

The Associated Press

SAINT-LAURENT-DE-LA-PLAINE, France (AP) – Carpenters building a new timber frame for the fire-ravaged roof of Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral are using the same tools and techniques as their medieval predecessors.

For them, working with hand axes to fashion oak beams has been like stepping back in time. It has given them a new appreciation of their predecessors’ handiwork that was architecturally revolutionary back in the 13th century.

The roof reconstruction hit an important milestone in May, when parts of the new frame were assembled and erected at a workshop in the Loire Valley, in western France.

Unlike in medieval times, the frame will be trucked to Paris and lifted by mechanical crane into position atop the cathedral.

A University of Alabama medieval architecture and art history instructor is among the team of 14 specialists tasked with repairing the roof. You can read more about her right here.

Read the full story on AP News right here.

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5/30/2023 11:59:26 AM (GMT -5:00)