While tourists queue in the summer sun to ascend Notre Dame Cathedral and admire its iconic gargoyles, a remarkable archaeological excavation is unfolding just four metres beneath their feet. This deep dive into Paris’s past, reaching back 2,000 years to Roman times, is a direct consequence of the cathedral’s 2019 fire and the subsequent plans to revitalise its forecourt.
Following the devastating blaze that saw Notre Dame’s spire collapse, the cathedral reopened in late 2024. As part of wider urban renewal, Paris aims to transform the currently stark square into a shaded, tree-lined space.
