Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tower Climb:
The entrance for Notre-Dame's tower climb is outside the cathedral,
alongtheleftside.Youcanhiketothetopofthefacadebetweenthetowersandthentothe
top of the south tower (400 steps total) for a gargoyle's-eye view of the cathedral, Seine,
and city (€8.50, covered by Museum Pass but no bypass line for passholders; daily April-
Sept 10:00-18:30, Fri-Sat until 23:00 in July-Aug, Oct-March 10:00-17:30, last entry 45
minutes before closing; to avoid long lines arrive before 10:00 or after 17:00—after 16:00
in winter; tel. 01 53 10 07 00,
http://notre-dame-de-paris.monuments-nationaux.fr
).
Self-Guided Tour:
The
cathedral facade
is worth a close look. The church is
dedicated to “Our Lady”
(Notre Dame).
Mary is center stage—cradling God, right in the
heart of the facade, surrounded by the halo of the rose window. Adam is on the left and
Eve is on the right.
Below Mary and above the arches is a row of 28 statues known as the Kings of
Judah. During the French Revolution, these biblical kings were mistaken for the hated
Frenchkings,andNotre-DamerepresentedtheoppressiveCatholichierarchy.Thecitizens
stormed the church, crying, “Off with their heads!” All were decapitated, but have since
been recapitated.
Speaking of decapitation, look at the carving to the left of the doorway on the left.
The man with his head in his hands is St. Denis. Back when there was a Roman temple on
this spot, Christianity began making converts. The fourth-century bishop of Roman Par-
is, Denis was beheaded as a warning to those forsaking the Roman gods. But those early
Christians were hard to keep down. The man who would become St. Denis got up, tucked
his head under his arm, headed north, paused at a fountain to wash it off, and continued
until he found just the right place to meet his maker: Montmartre. (Although the name
“Montmartre” comes from the Roman “Mount of Mars,” later generations—thinking of
their beheaded patron, St. Denis—preferred a less pagan version, “Mount of Martyrs.”)
The Parisians were convinced by this miracle, Christianity gained ground, and a church
soon replaced the pagan temple.
