Devastated by the fire which occurred on Monday in the late afternoon, the cathedral of Our Lady has revealed little by little the extent of injuries that disfigure all day long. Immeasurable loss, the structure of the roof of more than 1000 square meters which was entirely of oak, and for a large part, of origin, that is to say, of the Thirteenth century.

The quasi-entirety of the roof laid on a wooden frame, has disappeared. CHARLES PLATIAU/REUTERS

“This is perhaps one of the greatest masterpieces of the compagnons charpentiers du devoir. For a painter, it’s a bit like if the mona lisa was in smoke, tells the story of Thomas Büchi, master carpenter switzerland to the AFP. It is this fabulous frame – I’ve had the chance to visit in the 1980s – who sparked my love for wood and the passion that I have for my business. This frame it is a myth, it is a legend for several reasons. It was so complex that it stunned the whole of the Middle Ages.”

Until Tuesday morning, the fire brigade intervened to extinguish the remaining pockets. YVES HERMAN/REUTERS

To build this immense structure, the work has been long-term. “First of all, it took 50 years to prepare the wood. We begin to cut the trees – about 1500 – around the year 1200. Cut and layer for a year, the head toward the North so that they are aligned with the energies of the earth. Then they went to the barking and submerge it in a swamp for 25 years. This preserves the wood from fungi and insects. In 1225, we are going to stand out of the water, and then saw the trunks into beams and leave them to dry for 25 years,” says Thomas Büchi.

workers secure the statue on the facade of the cathedral. BENOIT TESSIER/REUTERS

as Soon as possible, the first controls on the exterior elements of the building have been launched. Statues, pinnacles, gargoyles… If the stone structure of the building seems to have generally resisted the fire, it is necessary to check all of the items that have been damaged, displaced, or weakened by the flames, the dilatation, the water jets…

Thanks to the intervention of firefighters, two bell towers and gargoyles have escaped the flames. YVES HERMAN/REUTERS Among the concerns, the state of the huge scaffolding that surrounded the arrow in the course of rehabilitation. On the rosettes of the gables of the transept, the stone has been burned by the fire. GONZALO FUENTES/REUTERS The risk of collapse of the sprockets

The concerns are also important with regard to the two gables overlooking the south and north wings. These triangles of stone, pierced with rosettes, measuring about 15 meters high. They are destabilized by the disappearance of the structure. The gabled north even threatens to collapse in the street, according to the minister of Culture, Franck Riester. He could train with him the sublime rose window north.

The concerns are also important with regard to the two gables overlooking the south and north wings. LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP

According to the minister of Culture, the north tower has also been weakened, and some elements may, “by collapsing, leading to the central sprocket triangle that is between the two towers”. If he were to fall, it could threaten the great organ which is situated below.

elements of the north tower, which was hit by the fire, also threaten to topple the triangular gable which is located behind the gallery in the facade. YVES HERMAN/REUTERS

Under the roof and its frame, the damage is also considerable. The first images taken last night through the doors of the west facade was hoped that the vault had been pierced at a single location mainly. The photos taken of the day show that the damage is much more important.

in the photos On the evening of Monday, the canopy is pierced only at one place

The images taken yesterday evening showed the vault of the nave perforated in one place only, and between the two rib vaults. Damage is relatively small given the importance of the loss. PHILIPPE WOJAZER/AFP

About the photos of Tuesday, the intersecting ribs in the heart of the cathedral also collapsed.

images taken of day Tuesday are talking: from the day before, a new part of the vault collapsed, much wider this time: a cross-ribbed full has disappeared. POOL/REUTERS

After the collapse of a portion of the vault of the nave, presumably under the impact of the fall of the arrow, a cross-arched sole collapsed in the night as you can see on the photos taken on Tuesday. It is, nothing less, one that was at the intersection of the nave, choir and transept, is one of the most important elements in the overall structure of the building.

View of the gallery, the perspective of the nave and the choir is frightening: it was discovered that the two collapses, the key of the vault, with their chaos of beams charred and stones. -/AFP

View of the gallery, the perspective of the nave and the choir is frightening: it was discovered that the two collapses, the key of the vault, with their chaos of beams charred and stones. At the bottom, the end of the chorus seems to be relatively spared, but the state of the wooden choir stalls and the decorated wall that surrounds them is more uncertain.

The whole of the vow of Louis XIII, with the statue of the king, his son Louis XIV, and the pieta seems to be intact. To the right, on the pillar, the statue of Notre-Dame de Paris. LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP

The set of the Vow of Louis XIII, with the statue of the king, his son Louis XIV, and the pieta seems to be intact. To the right, on the pillar, Notre-Dame de Paris. Carved in the middle of the Fourteenth century, it is one of the elements of art the most emblematic of the place.

“check out our special issue dedicated to Notre-Dame de Paris

” SEE ALSO – Notre-Dame de Paris, filmed by a drone ten days before the fire

Our Lady of Paris filmed by a drone ten days before the fire – Watch on Figaro Live