Expert coordinatesGerman aid programmes

Monika Grütters, Minister of State for Culture, has commissioned the former master builder of the Cologne Cathedral, Prof. Barbara Schock-Werner, to coordinate the German offers of assistance for the reconstruction of Notre-Dame. Prof. Schock Werner is member of the board of the CIVILSCAPE member organisation Rheinischer Verein für Denkmalpflege und Landschaftsschutz. She has continued her intensive professional commitment to civic engagement. In addition to numerous lectures, among others at the Landscape Forum Berlin, she has given many people access to buildings such as Cologne Cathedral through her knowledgeable guided tours.

The cathedral Notre-Dame in Paris was severely damaged in the devastating fire on 15 April 2019. Germany also offers to contribute its expertise and experience to the reconstruction effort. This was announced by the Federal Chancellor after a meeting with Monika Grütter, Minister of State for Culture.

Monika Grütters explained: “The devastating fire at Notre Dame deeply shocked us all. The cathedral in the heart of Paris not only has great symbolic significance for France, but as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site it also shapes our common cultural identity in Europe. Cultural loss affects us all. All the more grateful I am for the wave of helpfulness and solidarity also here in Germany”.

The Minister of State for Culture, Monika Grütters, entrusted 18 April 2019 Prof. Barbara Schock-Werner with the coordination of the assistance and technical expertise now offered. The architect and art historian was master builder of Cologne Cathedral from 1999 to 2012 and is regarded as an internationally renowned expert in this field. Prof. Schock-Werner will also accompany the Minister of State for Culture as a consultant to Paris on 30 April, where Grütters will meet her French counterpart Franck Riester and offer him support from the German side.

Numerous German experts as well as federal and state experts have offered their help at all levels for the reconstruction of Notre Dame. Networks and associations in the field of monument preservation as well as palace and cathedral construction huts are ready to provide professional and technical assistance. It is time to stand united and to provide advice and assistance, if requested by France.

With the Decade of Action for Landscape in Europe (DALE) 2018-2027 the DALE partners are preparing actually “Religions and Landscapes” as the annual theme for 2020. Already the international conference on religious heritage in Paris in October 2018 layed the corner stone for this decision. During the conference the participants were invited for an impressive concert in the chorus of Notre Dame.