Treasure found under Notre Dame Cathedral after shocking fire

After the Notre Dame Cathedral fire, archaeologists were allowed to search beneath the ruins, and the artifacts they unearthed have shed new light on the history of one of France's most iconic landmarks.

On December 7, 2024, Notre Dame Cathedral, one of France's oldest and most famous symbols, reopened to visitors after five years of closure for restoration since the fire in April 2019.

Inside Notre Dame Cathedral. (Source: AFP/VNA).

After the fire, it took nearly three years to clear the rubble and reinforce the damaged stone walls and vaulted ceilings.

Under French regulations, any construction project that disturbs land where ancient artifacts or relics may be found must involve archaeologists.

At Notre Dame, their job is to ensure that no valuable artifacts are crushed by the 770-ton scaffolding erected to rebuild the spire.

Archaeologist Christophe Besnier and his team from the French National Institute of Archaeological Research were initially given no more than five weeks to dig under the stone floor at the intersection where the transept (the short arm of the cruciform church) meets the nave and choir.

Historical artifacts are common in Notre Dame. But because Besnier's team was only allowed to dig 16 inches below the floor—the depth of the scaffolding foundation—he didn't really expect to find many. Fortunately, he was wrong, as his team found 1,035 fragments of many beautiful works of art in the heart of the cathedral.

The head of a statue was found under the floor of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. (Source: Inrap)

Once Besnier's team removed the floor tiles and a thin layer of dirt and rubble, the top of a lead coffin emerged. Nearby, limestone sculptures also emerged: life-size human heads and torsos neatly arranged on the floor along the entrance to the choir.

Besnier was then given permission to dig 16 inches deeper so he could excavate the artifacts. While the construction team waited, the planned five-week excavation dragged on for more than two months.

Archaeologists identified the unearthed statues as remnants of the original 13th-century limestone "cross screen" that separated the choir and sanctuary of Notre Dame Cathedral from public view.

Dismantled in the early 18th century, the nearly 4m high screen has essentially disappeared, leaving only a few fragments and no full description or record of its fate.

The Cross Screen - a Lost Masterpiece

The Cross Screen is a masterpiece of Gothic sculpture. Among the life-size statues unearthed by Besnier's team was the head and torso of a dead Christ - eyes closed, red blood dripping from a spear wound in his side.

Architectural historian Mathieu Lours says the cruciform screen at Notre Dame has two purposes.

Destroyed in the early 18th century, part of the cross screen was buried beneath Notre Dame Cathedral. (Source: Inrap)

The first purpose was to provide priests with a platform to read the scriptures to the public gathered in the nave. Stairs led to a pulpit on a screen, from which priests could preach to the masses.

The second purpose was to ensure privacy: The screen allowed priests to hide in the choir during their daily prayers, away from public view.

The reason the cross curtain was removed

The cross screen survived for nearly five centuries. Eventually, liturgical practices changed, and the Gothic style came under attack. The clergy of Notre Dame were traditionalists, and they kept their cross screen longer than most churches in France.

But under pressure from King Louis XIV, who wanted a more open choir, the original crucifix was finally dismantled in the 1710s and buried next to where it once stood. Although the sculptures were dismantled and broken, they were still considered sacred, and therefore were not allowed to be removed from the church.

The researchers unearthed about 1,000 pieces of the screen, of all sizes, about 700 of which still had traces of paint. Archaeologist Besnier is not sure how much of the screen his team has unearthed, but he believes there is much more beneath the choir, beyond the scope of their excavation.

Without the fire, Besnier said, his team would never have had the chance to discover even this part of the cross's screen.