After more than five years of reconstruction following the fire that devastated Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in 2019, two invitation-only ceremonies on Saturday and Sunday will mark the rebirth of this well-known tourist attraction.
About 50 heads of state and government are expected to attend the ceremonies, including the elected President of the United States, Donald Trump.
The cathedral, a landmark of Gothic architecture, was built around 1260 AD and stood for 850 years before being consumed by flames in 2019.
The cause of the catastrophic fire that ravaged the monument on April 15 remains a mystery, although investigators believe it was accidental.
Regardless, the figures behind the reconstruction efforts are impressive. Restoring the historic monument to its former state cost about €700 million ($737 million), according to Rebuilding Notre Dame de Paris, the public body led by Jost that is responsible for the work. Overall, €846 million ($891 million) has been raised in donations from 340,000 donors from 150 countries. Extra funds will be used to restore other monuments. A Symbol of Paris
Notre-Dame is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a symbol of Paris and the French nation. It is located in the heart of the city, on Île de la Cité.
Before the 2019 fire, an average of 12 million tourists visited Notre Dame Cathedral each year, making it one of the most visited monuments in Paris. In 2018, Notre-Dame Cathedral was the most visited cultural site in Paris, welcoming over 13 million visitors.