“Each face, each stone, of this venerable monument, is a page of the history, not only of the country, but of the science and the art” (Victor Hugo, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame [1831: 110]).
“It was a singular destiny…for the church of Notre-Dame, at that period, to be thus beloved in two different ways, and with so much devotion, by two beings so unlike as Claude and Quasimodo – loved by the one, a sort of half-human creature, instinctive and savage, for its beauty, for its stature, for the harmonies dwelling in the magnificent whole; loved by the other, a being of cultivated and ardent imagination, for its signification, its mystic meaning, the symbolic language lurking under the sculpture on its front, like the first text under the second in a palimpsestus – in short, for the enigma which it eternally proposes to the understanding” (Victor Hugo, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame [1831: 155]).
Thoughts on Papyrus 
I nearly cried when I saw the news about the fire in Notre-Dame! Luckily, I don’t think anyone was hurt. I hope they can rebuild it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, I hope they can re-build it, but it pains me to think of artworks and historical structures lost. I took the news badly and am actually still emotionally devastated. I loved that Cathedral since childhood and it actually means much to me, read about it a lot since childhood, collected Hugo book editions, visited Paris on a number of occasions for the sole purpose of actually visiting it, so am still a bit shaken. Maybe my reaction is unnatural, but I cannot help it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know! I’ve always wanted to see it if I ever visited France, but even if they rebuild it, it won’t be the same.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wept on seeing the flames. Not only for the memories of having visited so many years ago, but for the assault by chance on our human heritage.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I cannot agree more. It was very painful and distressing for me to watch the flames too. It is a cultural, historical, emotional disaster.
LikeLike