In a workshop adjacent to Cologne’s cathedral, craftsmen are working on the renovation of four damaged stained glass windows of another iconic building, Paris’s Notre-Dame cathedral.

Katrin Wittstadt, scientific director of the restoration workshop: “And what do we do now with the donations that were collected (after the fire)? We could have transferred them to France, but we came to the conclusion, after many discussions, that we could also link them to a concrete measure, which is also moving, and that is the stained glass windows. They could be removed from Notre Dame and transported to Germany. The Dombauhütte (cathedral workshop) offered to do it, we are so close to France, and it is our brother or sister church, as you like… Then the windows arrived in Cologne. “

“It was something special to receive these pieces of stained glass, because it was linked to a lot of emotions. The pieces themselves are one thing, but there is also a lot of soul in this project. And of course we also felt it here in the workshop when we unpacked the pieces. “

Élodie Schneider , stained glass windows restorer: “The restoration is rather simple, the windows are in good condition, the fire did not cause any damage to the windows. Unfortunately, a lot of breakage has to be repaired with silicone glue (…) and of course we are short of time. We have to move forward as quickly as possible and with the best quality to put these stained glass windows back in Notre-Dame next spring. “

Mayre Maquine, stained glass windows restorer: “As Notre Dame is a very important building, not only for France but also for Europe, it is of course a great honour to be able to do this. It’s interesting to work on glass from fifty years ago. It has its own problems and it’s very interesting.” ©AFP