The Cathedral of Notre Dame, both a witness to and a representation of the weight of French architecture rich history, still remains one of the most iconic buildings of Paris. Although construction began in 1163, it took over 170 years to see a completed monument: Notre Dame had become the largest religious building in the Western world until the thirteenth century. But Notre Dame has continued to grow: after the success of the masterpiece novel of Victor Hugo, the cathedral was restored in the nineteenth century by Viollet-le-Duc, to whom we owe the 56 chimeras which today decorate the gallery towers.
Now a UNESCO World Heritage site, the cathedral has more than twenty million visitors a year. The visits organized every day are rich in essential information to see and understand the true value of this stunning monument full of history!
