Rebuilding Notre-Dame: What the Fire Didn’t Destroy

In April 2019, when fire swept through Notre-Dame de Paris, the world responded with shock, grief—and questions. Could it be saved? Should it look the same? What, exactly, were we trying to preserve?

Those questions are at the heart of my new book, The Sacred Frame. It’s not just about stone and scaffolding. It’s about meaning, memory, and the ethics of building—again.

 

What Are We Really Rebuilding?

Notre-Dame isn’t just a church. It’s a monument of shared experience. Generations have stood beneath its vaults, awed by the light and silence. For some, it’s a place of prayer. For others, it’s a marker in time—part of the emotional map of Paris, and of our collective memory.

To rebuild it is to affirm that continuity matters. Not just stylistic fidelity—but the cultural and emotional lineage carried by spaces like this.

Crafting the Future With Ancient Tools

One of the most inspiring aspects of the reconstruction is the revival of ancient craftsmanship. Artisans are carving stone and shaping oak beams using centuries-old methods. Not because we lack new tools—but because those methods still work, ecologically and structurally.

Craft is not just skill. It’s care passed down. And in moments like this, it becomes a form of resilience.

Sacred Space Without a Script

Today, fewer people attend church—but Notre-Dame still moves them. You don’t have to be religious to feel reverence inside that space. That’s why I describe it as a “secular pilgrimage”: a place where people go not to convert, but to feel.

In rebuilding, we’re also rebuilding that emotional access. We’re preserving a place where stillness and awe are possible—even without belief.

Beauty Is for Everyone

Notre-Dame’s carvings and colored glass don’t sit behind a paywall. Its beauty is public, and that’s no small thing in an age of privatized space and gated experiences.

That’s why I argue: beauty is not a luxury. It’s a civic resource. And rebuilding Notre-Dame is an investment in our shared right to be moved by place.

Preservation isn’t just technical. It’s ethical. In The Sacred Frame, I explore how the choices we make—about materials, methods, and even symbolism—reflect our values. Are we rebuilding for the past, or for the future?

At its best, architecture doesn’t just shelter us. It teaches us. And Notre-Dame, in being rebuilt with both history and humility in mind, becomes more than restored. It becomes renewed.

 Riley Carter
Architect | Educator | Passive House Advocate