Notre-Dame lecture: Chief architect talks about the reconstruction

Millions of people watched the collapse of the burning spire of Notre-Dame on their screens in April 2019. While the ashes were still smouldering, experts set about planning the reconstruction. One of them was Pascal Prunet, who - together with Rémi Fromont and Philippe Villeneuve - led the restoration work. On Tuesday, 11 February 2025, Prunet will speak at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg about the challenges of restoring the cathedral to its original state.

The "Architecte en chef des Monuments Historiques" will provide insights into securing the building, renovating the existing structure and repairing the World Heritage Site in line with its listed status. His focus is on the restoration of the roof truss and the high, wide-span vaults. These are a milestone in the history of construction. As a stone sky, they were groundbreaking for the great Gothic cathedrals - and they proved their special technical quality in the extreme situation of the fire.

The lecture will take place on Tuesday, 11 February 2025, 6 to 8 p.m., Cottbus main campus, Konrad-Wachsmann-Allee 3, Central Lecture Building (ZHG), Lecture Hall A.

Interested parties are cordially invited! Admission is free.

The event will be streamed at: https://www.youtube.com/@BTUCottbusSenftenberg

Background

The event marks the end of the lecture series "What are we building on?" organised by the Institute of History of Art and Architecture (IBK), which is an interdisciplinary teaching and research network at the Faculty of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Urban Planning at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg.

The institution brings together eight key areas under one roof: Architecture and Visualisation, Architectural Theory, History of Architecture, ArchitecturalConservation, Heritage Management, Cultural Management and History of Art.