After more than five years of frenetic, but sometimes interrupted, reconstruction work, Notre-Dame Cathedral showed itself to the world again on Friday, with rebuilt high ceilings and like-new creamy stones erasing the dark memories of its devastating fire in 2019.

Live-streamed footage of a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron showed the interior of the iconic cathedral as worshipers might have experienced it in previous centuries, its wide open spaces filled with bright light on a winter’s day fresh and sunny which illuminated the vibrant colors of the stained glass windows.

Outside, the monument is another construction sitewith scaffolding and cranes. But the renovated interior – shown in all its glory on Friday for the first time before the public is allowed back on December 8 – proved breathtaking.

Stonemasons repaired gutted ceilings

Gone are the gaping holes the fire tore in the vaulted ceilings, leaving piles of charred debris. New stones were carefully rebuilt to repair and fill the wounds that had left the interior of the cathedral exposed to the elements. Delicate golden angels look down from the centerpiece of one of the reconstructed ceilings, appearing to once again fly above the transept.

The cream-colored limestone walls of the cathedral look brand new, cleaned not only of fire dust but also of the grime accumulated over centuries.

The cathedral attracted millions of faithful and visitors each year before the fire of April 15, 2019 forced its closure and transformed the monument located in the heart of Paris into a forbidden zone except for artisans, architects and others. mobilized for reconstruction.

Macron entered through the cathedral’s giant, intricately carved front doors and stared at the ceilings in wonder. He was accompanied by his wife Brigitte, the Archbishop of Paris and others.

New and old techniques deployed

Powerful vacuum cleaners were used to first remove toxic dust released when the fire melted the lead roofs of the cathedral.

Thin layers of latex were then sprayed onto the surfaces and removed a few days later, removing dirt with them from the pores, corners and crevices of the stones. In total, 42,000 square meters of masonry were cleaned and decontaminated, an area equivalent to approximately six football fields.

“We have the impression that it was built yesterday, that it was just born, even though Notre-Dame is very old,” said stonemason Adrien Willeme, who worked on the reconstruction. “Because it was so carefully restored and cleaned, it looks truly extraordinary.”

Gel cleaners were also used on some of the painted walls, removing many years of built-up dirt and revealing their vibrant colors once again.

Carpenters hand-worked like their medieval counterparts as they hewed giant oak beams to rebuild the roof and spire which collapsed like a flaming spear into hell. The beams bear the marks of the carpenters’ work, with dents made in the woodwork by their hand axes.

Some 2,000 oak trees were felled to rebuild frameworks so dense and complex that they are nicknamed “the forest”.

This is a preview before reopening

Macron’s visit kicked off a series of events marking the reopening of this 12th-century Gothic masterpiece. At the end of his tour, the president addressed the hundreds of workers gathered inside the cathedral and thanked them for their work on what he called the “construction site of the century.”

“The shock of the reopening will, I want to believe, be as powerful as that of the fire. But it will be a shock of hope,” he said. “The hell at Notre-Dame was an injury to the nation. And you were his medicine.

Macron will return on December 7 to deliver another speech and will attend the consecration of the new altar during a solemn mass the following day.

-Thomas Adamson and John Leicester, Associated Press

Marine Lesprit contributed to this report.