There are some things that can't get any better. The Mona Lisa comes to mind, as does Shakespeare's Hamlet, the basketball play of Michael Jordan, and the singing voice of Whitney Houston. One would think that Paris' famed Notre-Dame Cathedral would be on that list, but apparently, one would be wrong.
In December 2021, renovations were approved for the interior of the 850-year-old structure, which was badly damaged by fire in April 2019. The revamping is far from unanimously approved. Many cultural figures and intellectuals are strongly against the work, arguing that "modernizing" Notre-Dame is something close to sacrilege. The work, which includes installing new modern artwork and lighting, and rearranging the tabernacle to make moving about easier for visitors, is expected to be completed before the cathedral's reopening in 2024.
There's no hunchback, but...
- Notre-Dame Cathedral is the most-visited site in Paris, welcoming more than 13 million visitors a year.
- All distances to and from Paris are measured with a small plate with a compass that sits just in front of the cathedral.
- Notre-Dame's organ has five keyboards and 8,000 pipes, making it arguably the largest in France.