What is the mysterious sarcophagus discovered in Notre-Dame Cathedral?

The operation to clean, repair and restore Notre-Dame Cathedral began over two years ago. It has been a long and arduous task for the Établissement Public, the public agency in charge of managing the restoration of the 12th Century Parisian cathedral, which was severely damaged by fire on the evening of 15 April 2019. It is still not clear whether faulty wiring or a discarded cigarette caused the blaze, which ripped through the cathedral’s attic and completely destroyed the oak, lattice roof and some of the rib vaulting. Worse still, the fire engulfed and toppled the iconic, 19th-century spire designed by Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc’s during the 1859 restoration project. The 93 meter-spire is to be painstakingly rebuilt, based on the original design under the supervision of architects Philippe Villeneuve and Rémi Fromont.

Notre-Dame clean-up operation gets underway

The clean-up operation began in 2019. The cathedral structure was secured and debris removed from the vaults. The nave was vacuum-cleaned to remove harmful lead dust particles and masonry work applied to strengthen the rib vaults. The Safety Phase was completed last summer with a wooden support structure assembled to stabilise the interior of the cathedral.

The Restoration Phase commenced at the start of 2022 and the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) began archaeological excavation work on the site at the start of February. On 14 March, Minister of Culture Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin gave an update on what had been found during the archaeological operation. There were some remarkable discoveries - painted fragments of a rood screen, ancient tombs and the most surprising find of all - a fully preserved lead sarcophagus, which analysts believe dates back to the 14th century. The anthropomorphic sarcophagus was uncovered just over a metre below a layer of the church floor between brick pipes dating to the 18th century, in the western part of the transept crossing.

Due to the unique characteristics and its location, the hypothesis is that it is likely the final resting place of a high-ranking religious dignitary. There were fissures in the lead casing which allowed archaeologists to insert an endoscopic camera to get a clearer idea of its contents. The images showed cloth remains and organic matter such as hair, bone and plant remnants.

The sarcophagus was removed from the cathedral on Tuesday and has been put in a secure location until it can be opened and examined by researchers at Toulouse University Hospital, according to INRAP officials. INRAP President Dominique Garcia told The Guardian, “A sarcophagus containing a human body is not an archaeological object. These are human remains, and while examining the sarcophagus and analyzing the body and other objects inside, we must do so with respect. We need to have the skills of forensic scientists, but also an historical approach - and in Toulouse, there is an efficient team, which is used to answering questions from archaeologists”.

Carbon dating will be used to determine the age of the skeletonized remains while scientists will also be able to identify its gender through studying bone characteristics. There has been no confirmation whether the sarcophagus will be re-interred at Notre-Dame once it has been examined. The French government plans to have the cathedral fully restored and functioning in time for the Paris Summer Olympics in July 2024.