The ancient building caught fire on April 16. AFP
It’s not often sunny in Paris, but people still love to walk along the banks of the Seine. They love the view of the city’s old buildings, especially Notre Dame Cathedral, with its iconic spire.
巴黎并非总是晴天，但人们依然喜爱在塞纳河畔漫步，喜欢欣赏城市中的古老建筑，尤其是巴黎圣母院，和那标志性的尖顶。
Unfortunately, that view has been forever changed. On April 16, a fire destroyed the spire of the 850-year-old cathedral, and two-thirds of the roof.
不幸的是，这样的景致已不复存在。4月16日，一场大火摧毁了这座850岁教堂的塔尖和三分之二的屋顶。
The fire shocked and saddened Parisians. Citizens gathered around the giant church, singing hymns and praying for the hundreds of firefighters who fought the flames.
大火让无数巴黎人震惊心碎。市民们聚集在大教堂周围，唱着圣诗，为数百位灭火的消防员们祈祷。
“The significance of Notre Dame, not only to Catholics but to all Parisians, cannot be underestimated,” wrote French author Bernard-Henri Levy. “For many in France, it’s more than a house of worship. It’s a symbol of French culture, architecture and history.”
“巴黎圣母院对于天主教徒乃至所有巴黎人的意义都不容小觑，”法国作家伯纳德-亨利·莱维写道。“对于不少法国民众而言，它不仅仅是做礼拜的教堂，更是法国文化、建筑及历史的标志。”
It’s no wonder that people felt sad. The church itself, after all, is a historical and artistic treasure. Built in 1163, it is one of the first Gothic cathedrals to have arched exterior supports, known as “flying buttresses”. It also combined Gothic art with Christian architecture. After Notre Dame, churches throughout Europe were built taller and looked more awesome.
人们感到心碎不足为奇。毕竟，教堂本身便是历史与艺术之瑰宝。巴黎圣母院建于1163年，是首座使用拱形外部支撑结构“飞扶壁”的哥特式教堂。它还将哥特艺术与基督教建筑结合在了一起。在巴黎圣母院之后，欧洲兴建的教堂更加雄伟壮观。
The church is also home to many religious artifacts, paintings and sculptures. Luckily, its world-famous stained glass rose windows survived the fire. These windows are made of many small panes and feature various Christian images.
教堂还藏有不少宗教文物、画作以及雕塑。幸运的是，其闻名于世的玫瑰花窗在火灾中幸免于难。花窗由许多小窗格组成，其上绘有各式各样的基督教画像。
Also safe are most of the church’s holy relics. The French Minister of Culture Franck Riester said that the crown of thorns and tunic of Saint Louis, who was King of France from 1226 until 1270, are safe in Paris City Hall.
教堂中的大部分圣物也安然无恙。法国文化部长弗兰克·里斯特表示，法国国王“圣路易”（1226-1270年在位）的荆棘王冠和束腰外衣已被安全转移至巴黎市政厅。
Despite its long history and many treasures, the cathedral needed the help of a writer to become truly famous. Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, presented the building to a wide audience of readers. The book’s ugly lead character, Quasimodo, serves as a symbol for Paris’ forgotten Gothic architecture. Hugo wrote the book to remind people of it, with hope they would work to protect the beautiful old buildings of Paris.
尽管拥有悠久的历史和丰富的藏品，这座大教堂却是因为一位作家才得以真正闻名。维克多·雨果在1831年出版了小说《巴黎圣母院》，将这座建筑呈现在更多的读者面前。书中丑陋的主人公卡西莫多成了巴黎被遗忘的哥特式建筑的象征。雨果写下这本书来提醒世人，希望大家共同保护巴黎美丽的古建筑。
French President Emmanuel Macron has promised to reconstruct the historic building. “Notre Dame is our history, it’s our literature, it’s our imagery,” he said in a public speech following the fire.
法国总统马克龙承诺将重建这一古建筑。“巴黎圣母院代表着我们的历史、我们的文学和我们的想象力，”他在大火后的一场公开演讲中如此表示。
