The fire that broke out at Paris' Notre Dame cathedral on Monday night illicited an outpouring of grief around the globe—arguably the most intense of which happened when onlookers captured the moment that the 800-year-old structure's iconic spire was overwhelmed with flames and collapsed. With plans for rebuilding Notre Dame already underway—president Emmanuel Macron has declared he wants the work completed in five years—Prime Minister Edouard Philippe revealed on Tuesday that the government will host an international design competition for a reimagined spire.
"Should we rebuild [the spire]? Identically? Adapted to the techniques and challenges of our time? An international architectural competition for the reconstruction of the Cathedral Spire will be organized," he wrote in a tweet.
The spire had been installed during a 19th-century restoration by French architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc. Viollet-le-Duc's 750 ton–, lead-and-wood spire replaced an earlier version that had degraded over five centuries and was removed in 1786. Viollet-le-Duc's spire was topped with a rooster weather vane that was found among the debris following the fire.
While many users responded to Philippe's tweet calling for an identical replacement, other Twitter users offered other—let's say, whimsical?—alternatives.
This article has been updated since its original publication.
