The Notre Dame Cathedral has announced that it is expecting to reopen its doors for visitations by the end of the upcoming year.
This will be five years after the iconic landmark in Paris was threatened by fire five years ago and had to shut down.
According to sources, the restoration of the cathedral will not be ready until the Paris Olympics.
They have been scheduled to take place in the upcoming summer, with the authorities excited to host a slew of people from across the globe.
As of now, the tentative date announced for the reopening of the iconic Parisian icon is the 8th of December 2024.
The project
According to the French Army General, General Georgelin, who is responsible for the reconstruction project, he has been given a timeline till the end of the next year to finish the restoration.
In his words, he is optimistic that this will happen in the given timeline and stated that the reconstruction is off to a great start already.
Meanwhile, the French Culture Minister took to pointing out that the cathedral will still have to undergo some serious renovation work even after it opens its doors.
This is because the reconstruction to be done is substantial, but the rest can be done even when it is open for visits by tourists.
The reconstruction of the icon in Paris initially began in the year 2022. It took over two years of consistent work to ensure that the foundations of the building were secure and stable enough for workers to rebuild the entire landmark.
Consequently, the authorities revealed that they had decided to remake the icon in the same way it was before.
This will include creating a high spire of 96 meters once again, which was originally built in the 19th century.
The French
As of now, the relevant authorities have recruited no less than 1,000 people across the country to work on the restoration project of Notre Dame.
This year, it hopes to bring back the iconic centerpiece of the cathedral, which sustained substantial damage in the fire.
General Georgelin added that the return of the spire in the sky is going to be the symbol that will mark the return of the landmark in Paris.
He went on to detail how there were a number of different tasks to complete before then, such as the framework, the painting, the stones, the organ, the vault, the stained glasses, and so on.
The monument
It is no secret that the Parisian monument has been an attraction for millions of people across the globe every year.
On an annual basis, the country manages to bring in 12 to 14 million tourists to the cathedral. Together, this makes over 30,000 visitors to the cathedral in a day.
The monument holds a special place in the hearts of couples who take to crowning their love at the location.
Every day, a number of religious services used to be held at the forefront of the iconic landmark, which totaled more than 2,000 annually.
