MOSCOW, 17 Mar. Notre Dame was the first Gothic cathedral built using iron rebar, writes Phys.org with reference to PLoS ONE.
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“Notre Dame is by far the first Gothic cathedral where iron was considered as a valid building material for creating a new architectural form,” the researchers say.
Scientists were able to establish this fact in during the reconstruction after the fire in 2019 — they gained access to previously hidden parts of the cathedral. 12 iron staples were examined that fastened stones in different parts of the building. Carried out radiocarbon dating, microscopic, chemical, architectural analyses.
The results of the tests showed that these brackets were used in the earliest stages of construction in the 1160s.
In the middle of the XII century, Notre Dame was considered the tallest building — it was 32 meters in height. Previous studies have shown that the builders were able to achieve this through various architectural innovations. But until now it was not clear what role the use of iron played.
Earlier, scientists have uncovered the secret of the durability of ancient Roman buildings.