Restoration Work in Progress
All 16 Statues Return to the Spire
As of July 26, a powerful milestone has been reached in the restoration of Notre-Dame: all 16 copper statues that once encircled the base of the spire are now back in place.
The statues, which were first installed in 1861, include the 12 apostles and the symbolic figures of the four evangelists: the angel (Matthew), lion (Mark), bull (Luke), and eagle (John). The statues now once again face outward in groups of four, encircling the 300-foot-high spire.
Their restoration was made possible in part thanks to the early support of major French and American sponsors, who contributed even before the 2019 fire. Miraculously, the statues had been removed just days before the fire, sparing them from damage or destruction. After a meticulous restoration, they’ve been returned to their original glory and are now preserved with protective coating and renewed craftsmanship.
An Impressive Double-Helix Staircase in the South Tower
Carved from solid oak, this 178-step architectural marvel spirals up through the belfry, giving visitors access to Emmanuel—the cathedral’s largest bell—while offering a dramatic view of the restored wooden framework.
At 69 feet high, 12 feet wide, and weighing 20 tons, it’s the largest wooden double-helix staircase in the world. Led by the project’s principal architects, the project required 1,400 hours of design and 9,200 hours of construction, involving 1,200 hand-assembled oak pieces and a team of carpenters, cabinet makers, apprentices, and a master wrought-iron worker.
The spire is finished!
The spire roofing is nearing completion! Paused in 2024 to allow the vaults to be closed, the roofing of the lower part of the spire still needed to be completed. For several months, roofers, ornamental roofers, foundry workers, sculptors, scaffolders, and more have been working to restore the spire’s silhouette, both in the workshop and on site.
Particularly exposed to the elements, the beams and decorations of the openwork floors were entirely covered in lead for protection. To achieve this, the roofers used two solutions: either English paper, made of kraft paper and black polyethylene, was laid on the wood, protecting the lead sheet against corrosion and acting as a vapor barrier; or a thin layer of copper (treated to be the same color as the lead) raised by tabs leaving enough space for air to circulate.
Finally, the lead tables, previously shaped on templates in the workshop to facilitate work on site, are placed and fixed.
At the same time, the lead ornaments were also gradually installed: griffins, capitals, hooks, railings, etc. The spire is adorned with gray and regains its familiar silhouette. In June and July 2025, it is the turn of the 16 statues of the apostles to return to their place at the foot of the spire, after their restoration in the workshop.
South Tower Restoration Completed
For several months, a great deal of expertise has been at work restoring the south tower and preparing the new visitor route. Although spared by the fire, the tower revealed the need for various restoration works, which were able to be carried out by taking advantage of the available construction site environment.
These works mainly included the replacement of the belfry beams, the refurbishment of the tower roof , the restoration of the soundboards and the replacement of the yokes of the two bell towers.
These operations were aimed at preparing for the reopening of the tour circuit of the towers by the Centre des monuments nationaux, in September 2025. In this context, a double-revolution staircase of 178 steps, the largest wooden one in the world, was created to best welcome visitors and offer them exceptional access to the towers and the viewpoint over Paris.
Restoring the bells
Notre-Dame’s two bells are ringing again! On July 17, Emmanuel and Marie made their sounds heard in the Parisian sky for their first flight, which allowed them to demonstrate their proper functioning and to make final adjustments. Weighing 13 and 6 tons respectively, the bells have not left the cathedral since the fire and throughout the restoration of the south belfry .
As part of this restoration, the yokes of the two bourdons were refurbished in a workshop in Alsace. Imposing pieces of solid oak, the yokes allow the bells to be set in motion to ring at a single peal, from a height of nearly 60 meters. Their dimensions are adapted to the weight they have to support: 1.30 meters high and 3.30 meters long for the yoke of the Emmanuel bourdon, nearly 1 meter high and 3.20 meters long for that of the Marie bourdon.
In June, the trial assembly of the yokes in the workshop in Strasbourg, in accordance with the centuries-old art of bell artisans, made it possible to verify the proper execution of all the assemblies. The yokes, completely dismantled and transported to the cathedral, were then reassembled piece by piece in their final location in the south tower.
