The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is an impressive sight - the towers are 69 meters (226 feet) high and there are 387 steps up to their top. The roset in the center of the facade is 9,6 meters (31.5 feet) across - and that's the small one. The rosets on the South and North sides are 13,5 meters (44 feet) across. The cathedral is 130 meters (426 feet) long.
The location of the Notre Dame has had a religious building of some kind on it for a long time. Before the construction of the Notre Dame began in 1163, a temple to Jupiter, a Christian basilica and a romanesque church had occupied the ground. The Notre Dame was finally finished in 1345. It has never been completely finished according to the original plans, as the spires on the two towers were never added.
During the reconstruction of the Notre Dame in 1845 and the ensuing 23 years, after the French Revolution, during which it was even rumored to have been attempted burned down, the spire above the nave crossing was added.
The church has seen some royal and/or spectacular events in its time. Its construction was begun by King Louis VII, who had Pope Alexander III come and lay the foundation stone. The French Revolution saw the Notre Dame dedicated first to The Cult Of Reason, then The Cult Of The Supreme Being before the Commune gave up religion alltogether and turned the Notre Dame into a storage facility. In 1804 Napoleon crowned both himself and his wife Josephine in the Notre Dame.
In the latest restaurations, carried out from 1991 and through the rest of the millennium, the Notre Dame was not changed, but had a necessary renovation and restauration was done, changing its color from mostly black to mostly white.
The Notre Dame is a classical and impressive Gothic style building, complete with gargoyles and flying buttresses.
The artwork both on the outside and inside the cathedral is impressive both in quality and quantity. There are stories being told and religious icons depicted all over the cathedral.
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