The World renowned cathedral of Reims, France, ruined by the Hun

The World renowned cathedral of Reims, France, ruined by the Hun

Ruined cathedral of Reims

18765

Before us is the celebrated Cathedral at Reims, one of the architectural glories of France. It was completed in the 14th century and its facade is considered one of the most perfect masterpieces of the Middle Ages. The interior is 450 feet long, 98 wide, and in its highest part, 125 feet. In the south tower hang two great bells, one weighing 11 tons. These towers are 267 feet high and dominate the country for miles in every direction. Two of the delicate stone columns on the northeast corner of the south tower have been swept away by shell fire, a great hole torn in the roof, and the interior is a mass of ruins. The exquisite stained glass windows have disappeared, gaping holes showing their former location. The stone facade is chipped and crumbled in a hundred places from dying fragments of shell. The magnificent rose window over the main portal is but the skeleton of its former glory. Plans have already been made to rebuild the cathedral. Stored away in vaults are replicas in plaster of every one of the hundreds of statues which ornament the exterior of every column and pillar. Thousands of stones will have to be taken down and replaced by new ones. The undertaking will require years. But France will do it, in her painstaking, thorough way. The Huns justified their vandalism in destroying this glorious architectural masterpiece by the charge that France used the towers for military purposes. This is denied indignantly by men whose integrity is not open to question. Reims, so cruelly devastated by the war, lies about one hundred miles northeast of Paris.

1 stereograph : b&w

1 gelatine silver print stereograph (8 x 15 cm) mounted on card (9 x 18 cm)

Copyright. The Keystone View Company

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World War through the stereoscope