Article today in the New York Times talks of an urgent need for restoration work on the cathedral we all love. Broken gargoyles and fallen balustrades replaced by plastic pipes and wooden planks ... flying buttresses darkened by pollution and eroded by rainwater ... pinnacles propped up by beams and held together with straps. Everywhere the stone is eroded, and the more the wind blows, the more all of these little pieces keep falling.
To foot the bill — an estimated 150 million euros, or nearly $180 million — the cathedral is hoping to capitalize not only on the architectural patriotism of the French, but also on the francophilia of American donors.
I thought I might appeal to the francophiles in this forum as well. I list the url below so you can go directly to the NYT article if you wish.