The restored interior of Notre Dame cathedral has been unveiled for the first time after more than five years of reconstruction work.
The rebuilt soaring ceilings and cream stonework erased sombre memories of a devastating fire in 2019.
Images broadcast live of a visit by French president Emmanuel Macron showed the inside of the cathedral as worshippers might have experienced it back in medieval times, its wide, open spaces filled with bright light on a crisp and sunny winter’s day.
Gaping holes left in the vaulted ceilings and charred piles of debris are now gone.
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Mr Macron entered via the cathedral’s giant and intricately carved front doors and stared up at the ceilings in wonder.
The occasion is Mr Macron’s final visit to the construction site to see the restoration for himself before the monument’s reopening for worship on December 8th.
His two-hour tour is being televised live.
The visit kicks off a series of events ushering in the reopening of the 12th-century Gothic masterpiece.
Mr Macron will return on December 7th to deliver an address and attend the consecration of the new altar during a solemn Mass the following day.
Mr Macron’s administration hailed the reconstruction as a symbol of national unity. – AP
