Notre Dame

The construction of Notre Dame began in 1163 and was finally completed in 1345. That is almost two hundred of construction! The construction of the cathedral spanned the entire period of popularity of the Gothic style. I like to imagine that by the time it was finished, it was no longer fashionable to be wearing Gothic styles, and everyone was talking about the kicky new Renaissance fashion.

Later, during the French revolution, many of the heads of the statues were cut off (thought to have been depictions of the French kings) and disappeared. The heads were then found two hundred years later, in 1977 from an excavation nearby. That must have been an extremely odd sight. I think they should have put them back on, but the heads had already been reconstructed years earlier.