Philatelic Photograph: Cathédrale de Notre Dame de Paris - Paris, France

Interesting Places I've Photographed

Cathédrale de Notre Dame de Paris

Paris, France

Topic: Philatelic Photographs

GPS: N48° 51.193; E002° 20.940

Quick Description: 

Cathédrale de Notre Dame de Paris (Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris) is a historic Roman Catholic Marian cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the 4th arrondissement of Paris, France.

Long Description:

Cathédrale de Notre Dame is a world famous example of French Gothic architecture. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Paris. Construction began when the cornerstone was laid in 1163. By 1182 the apse and choir were completed. Work began on the west façade about 1200 and was completed in 1225. By 1250, the western towers and the north rose window were complete. From 1245–1260 the transepts remodelled in the Rayonnant style by Jean de Chelles. he also added the gabled portal to the north which contains the hallmark rose window. Pierre de Montreuil then duplicated these elements on the south transept.

South Rose Window

Notre Dame de Paris was among the first buildings in the world to use the flying buttress to support the exterior walls. The many small statues around the outside serve as supports for columns and water spouts, the famous gargoyles. 

The cathedral was extensively damaged during the French Revolution of 1789 - 1799 and subsequently restored to its original Gothic condition by order of Napoleon under the supervision of Eugène Viollet-le-Duc. In 1804, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor inside the Cathédrale de Notre Dame.

The stamp was issued by France in 2010 as part of an ongoing series of four stamps showing landmarks in European capital series. In 2010, the home country capital of Paris was selected. The stamp and depicts the south façade of Notre Dame as viewed from the riverbank across the River Seine.