Roots and wings, sure France 3, takes stock, thanks to exceptional and highly instructive images, of the state of great monuments in France and Italy, and reveals how science and technology are put at the service of their restoration.
At the heart of the Notre-Dame site
It is from the top of Chartres Cathedral that Carole Gaessler is launching this new issue of Roots and wings, which she wished to dedicate to architectural masterpieces which are in full renaissance.
Obviously, the magazine dwells at length on the Notre-Dame de Paris site, and takes us to the top of the cathedral, with the some 200 companions of duty who patiently and in the open air dismantle the scaffolding which was intended for the renovation of the spire and had started to melt under the 800 ° C of the April 2019 fire. “We were able to return to Notre-Dame when they were removing the scaffolding, which looks like a very complicated Mikado. We also witnessed the removal of the organ, covered with lead dust ”, explains Carole Gaessler.
Read also: Notre Dame de Paris. Wood “witness” to construction know-how and climate change
The resurrection of Chartres cathedral
The cameras also take us to the Saint-Donatien-et-Saint-Rogatien basilica, in Nantes, which had also suffered the devastation of a roof fire in June 2015. Then direction Chartres, whose cathedral had burned down in June 1836. “We are trying to understand how the architects thought of this renaissance at the time, while leaving the monument in its history, but using modern materials. “
Venice, the inexorable rise of the waters
After the fire, Carole Gaessler goes into the water. This element causes enormous damage in Venice. Saint Mark’s Square, built 73 cm above the sea, is more and more regularly flooded, as on November 12, 2019 when the sea rose to 1.87 m.
As the sea rises, the city sinks into the water. Saint Mark’s Basilica and Café Florian are threatened. The Ca’Rezzonico Palace, a 17th century geme century, too. When it was first built, its steps were almost all out of the water. “Today, only two have emerged. We lose one step per century ”, notes Professor Dario Camuffo, from the University of Padua. The walk is no less magnificent, between Gothic stones and splendid aerial views or closer, on gilded paneling, marbles and mosaics of the city of the Doges. Not to miss.
Roots and Wings at 9:05 p.m. on France 3
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