The Revival of Notre-Dame Cathedral Is a Showcase of Medieval Carpentry
To bring the cathedral back to life, French carpenters turned to a traditional technique called “scribing” that medieval artisans used to build the structure in the first place.
The facade of Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral in Paris.
Photographer: Christophe Petit Tesson/AFP via Getty Images
Hello and welcome to Bloomberg’s weekly design digest. I’m Kriston Capps, staff writer for Bloomberg CityLab and your guide to the world of architecture and the people who build things.
Notre-Dame de Paris reopens today five years after a fire ravaged the cathedral. My colleagues Feargus O’Sullivan and Tara Patel wrote about the massive undertaking to save the structure after the inferno. Today O’Sullivan shares some insights about the process to restore the church just as it was built, using medieval methods honed by French carpenters over centuries.