kick off the reconstruction of the arrow

The gargoyles are proudly reflected on the gold plate which marks a historic date for the Saint-Denis basilica. A few minutes before, this Friday, March 14, 2025, the first stone of the northern arrow of the Gothic jewel was laid. A gesture that officially launches one of the largest heritage projects in France, in the presence of Rachida Dati. The Minister of Culture wandered among the craftsmen and cut the stone before she finds her place. According to her, its reassembly constitutes a “real symbol of renewal and pride for Saint-Denis and its inhabitants” and in a wider way a “formidable tool of cohesion and gathering”.

An incomplete basilica

Since 1845, the splendid necropolis of the kings of France has been deprived of its arrow, formerly culminating at 90 meters. Restored by François DEBRET who dismantled it in 1845, due to its fragility after several storms, it was then taken care of by Viollet-le-Duc, whose project of reconstruction of the facade and its arrow does not succeed. Incomplete for more than 170 years, the Saint-Denis basilica will finally find its symbol. Thanks to historical documents and surveys, supported by sketches, photos and original stones, the challenge is to respect a faithful reconstruction. A project carried out by the association follow the arrow and supported by the Ministry of Culture.

130 craftsmen to go up the arrow

Beyond the kick-off of this major project, the laying of the first stone pays tribute to ancestral know-how. Stone tailors, blacksmiths, carpenters… It is more than 130 craftsmen who will participate in the reassembly of 15,228 stones. Stéphane Bern, chairman of the project sponsorship committee, says: “What I find fascinating is to see these young people who are committed to going up the arrow, who find a certain pride with these art professions gathered in a site. »»

This living heritage will be highlighted by La Fabrique de la Flèche. As early as September 2025, this system will become a place of transmission, where visitors will be able to observe craftsmen at work, understand the medieval arrow construction techniques or follow the retransmission of the site on screens live.

A device open to the general public, like the Terre-Dame de Paris site, which has enabled residents to discover many crafts. And perhaps “give birth to new vocations”, as Stéphane Bern points out.

The arrow, a wonder since the Middle Ages

For Mgr Étienne Guillet, bishop of the diocese of Saint-Denis, this historic day for the Saint-Denis basilica was an opportunity to recall that an arrow, since the Middle Ages, makes it possible to marvel “from the work of man, his genius, the beauty he knows how to produce”. A rejoicing that he explains by the ability of the arrow to raise our gaze “higher than everyday life, higher than emergencies, higher than the necessities and the tasks to be accomplished”. This speech filled with hope announces the color of the next five years of work to fully reassemble the northern arrow of the Saint-Denis basilica.