Inside History

Notre-dame

The western façade of Notre-dame is dominated by two impressive bell towers – north and south – both of which are 69 metres tall and were completed 10 years apart (1240 and 1250, respectively). They contain 10 church bells between them, the oldest being the bourdon Emmanuel, a 13-ton bell that was cast in 1686. Climbing to the top entails traversing spirals of 387 steps.