PARIS: Notre Dame Cathedral will be rebuilt just the way it stood before last year’s devastating fire.
No swimming pool or organic garden on the roof of the medieval Paris monument, or contemporary glass spire, or other modern twists. And to stay historically accurate, it will again be built with potentially toxic lead.
That’s the verdict reached by French President Emmanuel Macron, the cathedral’s present-day architects and the general in charge of the colossal reconstruction project for one of the world’s most treasured landmarks.
Macron, who wants Notre Dame reopened in time for the 2024 Olympics, had initially pushed for a contemporary touch atop the cathedral, prompting eye-catching proposals from architects around the world.
But Macron came around to the traditionalists’ argument, and approved reconstruction plans for the 12th century monument that were presented Thursday, according to a statement from the state agency overseeing the project.
The plan includes recreating the 19th century spire designed by architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc that collapsed in the fire and “favors fidelity to the monument’s form and a restoration of the cathedral in its latest state,” the statement said.
That means how Notre Dame was on the afternoon of April 15, 2019, before the fire broke out, consumed the roof and threatened the rose-windowed twin towers that keep the cathedral upright.
More than a year later, the structure remains unstable. It took nearly a year to clear out dangerous lead residue released in the fire and to get to the point where workers could start removing scaffolding that had been in place for a previous renovation effort. Actual reconstruction won’t start until next year.
The reconstruction plan presented Thursday says the project will replicate original materials “to guarantee the authenticity, harmony and coherence of this masterpiece of Gothic art.”
Those materials included tons of lead, which is raising concerns among health and environmental groups. Lead particles released during the fire forced schools in the area to close and prompted a lengthy, painstaking cleanup effort of the cathedral’s historic neighborhood on an island in the center of Paris.
France’s Notre Dame Cathedral to be rebuilt without modern touches
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France’s Notre Dame Cathedral to be rebuilt without modern touches
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- Plan includes recreating the 19th century spire designed by architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc
A Norwegian princess marries an American self-styled shaman in front of a star-studded audience
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- The wedding comes amid widespread criticism of the couple’s actions and waning support for the Norwegian royals, who have also been plagued by negative reports about an unruly family member who faces preliminary domestic violence charges
HELSINKI: Social media influencers, reality stars and TV personalities were among the guests as the Norwegian king’s eldest child, Princess Märtha Louise, married an American self-professed shaman on Saturday in a wedding ceremony following three days of festivities.
The 52-year-old Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett, who claims to be a sixth-generation shaman from California, tied the knot in the picturesque small town of Geiranger, one of Norway’s major tourist attractions located on a fjord with stunning views.
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Following festivities that started on Thursday, the actual wedding ceremony took place in a large white tent set up on a lush lawn. Guests told media outlets that Norwegian and US artists performed at the event along with a gospel choir and a singer representing Norway’s indigenous Sámi people.
“It was fantastic! It was Hollywood meets Geiranger,” Norwegian TV personality Harald Rønneberg described the colorful ceremony to public broadcaster NRK. “It was gospel and love. We laughed, we clapped, and we were touched. It was absolutely beautiful.”
The couple has sold the wedding photo rights to British celebrity magazine Hello! and the film rights to Netflix. The deals prompted protests from Norwegian media, which say the arrangement goes against local practices. The couple have often lashed out against the press while promoting themselves on social media.
The 87-year-old King Harald, who has been in fragile health the past few years, attended his daughter’s wedding together with Queen Sonja and other member of the Norwegian royal house. Crown Princess Victoria and her husband Prince Daniel represented the Swedish royal house together with her brother, Prince Carl Philip, and his wife Princess Sofia. No other European royals attended the wedding.
The wedding comes amid widespread criticism of the couple’s actions and waning support for the Norwegian royals, who have also been plagued by negative reports about an unruly family member who faces preliminary domestic violence charges.
Märtha Louise and Verrett, 49, have attracted headlines with their alternative beliefs. She is fourth in line to the Norwegian throne but said in 2022 that she’ll no longer officially represent the Norwegian royal house.
The princess — she has retained the title — has said she can talk with angels, while Verrett claims that he communicates with a broad range of spirits and has a medallion which helps ward off spells and cure diseases.
They became engaged in 2022. Following their marriage, Verrett will not have a royal title or official duties.
In a 2019 deal, Märtha Louise and Verrett agreed not to use her connection to the royal house or her title for commercial purposes.
But earlier this year Märtha Louise labeled bottles of gin with her title and launched the brand in time for the wedding, defying King Harald’s directive that she should not profit from her royal status. The label was eventually changed.
Märtha Louise has three children from her previous marriage with author and playwright Ari Behn, whom she divorced in 2017 after 14 years of marriage.
An Israeli boy who broke an ancient jar learns how the museum is piecing it back together
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- The jar was one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbar Rivlin, the director of the museum
HAIFA, Israel: As her 4-year-old son perused the Israeli museum’s ancient artifacts, Anna Geller looked away for just a moment. Then a crash sounded, a rare 3,500-year-old jar was broken on the ground, and her son stood over it, aghast.
“It was just a distraction of a second,” said Geller, a mother of three from the northern Israeli town of Nahariya. “And the next thing I know, it’s a very big boom boom behind me.”
The Bronze Age jar that her son, Ariel Geller, broke last week, has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered. It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
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What could be considered every parent’s worst nightmare became a learning experience Friday, as the Geller family returned to the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel. Ariel gifted the museum a clay vase of his own and was met with forgiving staff and curators.
Alex Geller said Ariel — the youngest of his three children — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash last Friday, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
“I’m embarrassed,” said Anna Geller, who said she tried desperately to calm her son down after the vase shattered. “He told me he just wanted to see what was inside.”
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The jar was one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbar Rivlin, the director of the museum.
She said she wanted to use the restoration as an educational opportunity and to make sure the Gellers — who curtailed their initial museum visit soon after Ariel broke the jar last week — felt welcome to return.
Nahariya, where the family lives, is in an area just south of Israel’s border with Lebanon that has come under Hezbollah rocket fire for more than 10 months, in a conflict linked to the war in Gaza. The family has been visiting museums and taking day trips around Israel this summer to escape the tensions, Alex Geller said.
There were a lot of kids at the museum that day, and he said when he heard the crash he prayed that the damage had been caused by someone else. When he turned around and saw it was his son, he was “in complete shock.”
He went over to the security guards to let them know what had happened in hopes that it was a model and not a real artifact. The father even offered to pay for the damage.
“But they called and said it was insured and after they checked the cameras and saw it wasn’t vandalism they invited us back for a make-up visit,” Alex Geller said.
Experts were using 3D technology and high-resolution videos to restore the jar, which could be back on display as soon as next week.
“That’s what’s actually interesting for my older kids, this process of how they’re restoring it, and all the technology they’re using there,” Alex Geller said.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Shafir, who was painstakingly reassembling the jar, said the artifacts should remain accessible to the public, even if accidents happen because touching an artifact can inspire a deeper interest in history and archaeology.
“I like that people touch. Don’t break, but to touch things, it’s important,” he said.
New Zealand’s Māori king dies after 18-year reign
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- Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII, 69, died in hospital after heart surgery
- He was the 7th to hold the position created in 1858 to unite indigenous Māori tribes in the face of British colonization
NUKU’ALOFA, Tonga: New Zealand’s Māori King, Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII, died Friday at age 69, days after the celebration of his 18th year on the throne.
He was the seventh monarch in the Kiingitanga movement, holding a position created in 1858 to unite New Zealand’s Indigenous Māori tribes in the face of British colonization.
Tuheitia died in hospital after heart surgery, said Rahui Papa, a spokesperson for the Kiingitanga, the Māori King Movement, in a post on Instagram.
The movement’s primary goals were to end the sale of land to non-Indigenous people, stop inter-tribal warfare, and provide a springboard for the preservation of Māori culture, the Waikato-Tainui tribe website said. The monarch has a largely ceremonial but still consequential role in New Zealand, where Māori make up close to 20 percent of the population.
“The death of King Tuheitia is a moment of great sadness for followers of Kiingitanga, Maaoridom and the entire nation,” Papa wrote on social media.
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon paid tribute to Tuheitia, saying his “unwavering commitment to his people and his tireless efforts to uphold the values and traditions of the Kiingitanga have left an indelible mark on our nation.”
“I will remember his dedication to Aotearoa New Zealand,” Luxon said, using the country’s Māori and English names, “his commitment to mokopuna (young people), his passion for te ao Māori (the Māori world), and his vision for a future where all people are treated with dignity and respect.”
In recent months, Tuheitia has coordinated national unity talks for Māori in response to policies of Luxon’s center-right government. Critics accuse the government of being anti-Māori in its efforts to reverse policies favoring Indigenous people and language.
King Charles III, New Zealand’s constitutional head of state, and his wife, Queen Camilla, were “profoundly saddened” by Tuheitia’s death.
“I had the greatest pleasure of knowing Kiingi Tuheitia for decades. He was deeply committed to forging a strong future for Māori and Aotearoa New Zealand founded upon culture, traditions and healing, which he carried out with wisdom and compassion,” Charles said in a statement.
The week before Tuheitia’s death, thousands traveled to Turangawaewae Marae, the Māori King Movement headquarters in the town of Ngāruawāhia, for annual celebrations of the king’s ascension to the throne.
The seat of the king is held by the Tainui tribes in the Waikato region, and it was not yet clear who will take the throne.
“It is expected that Kiingi Tuheitia will lie in state at Turangawaewae Marae for five days before he is taken to his final resting place on Taupiri Mountain,” Papa said.
Newborn rattlesnakes at a Colorado ‘mega den’ are making their live debut
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- Thanks to livestream video, scientists studying the den on a craggy hillside in Colorado are learning more about these enigmatic reptiles
- By involving the public, the scientists hope to dispel the idea that rattlesnakes are usually fierce and dangerous
CHEYENNE, Wyoming: A “mega den” of hundreds of rattlesnakes in Colorado is getting even bigger now that late summer is here and babies are being born.
Thanks to livestream video, scientists studying the den on a craggy hillside in Colorado are learning more about these enigmatic — and often misunderstood — reptiles. They’re observing as the youngsters, called pups, slither over and between adult females on lichen-encrusted rocks.
The public can watch too on the Project RattleCam website and help with important work including how to tell the snakes apart. Since researchers put their remote camera online in May, several snakes have become known in a chatroom and to scientists by names including “Woodstock,” “Thea” and “Agent 008.”
The project is a collaboration between California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, snake removal company Central Coast Snake Services and Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
By involving the public, the scientists hope to dispel the idea that rattlesnakes are usually fierce and dangerous. In fact, experts say they rarely bite unless threatened or provoked and often are just the opposite.
Rattlesnakes are not only among the few reptiles that care for their young. They even care for the young of others. The adults protect and lend body heat to pups from birth until they enter hibernation in mid-autumn, said Max Roberts, a CalPoly graduate student researcher.
“We regularly see what we like to call ‘babysitting,’ pregnant females that we can visibly see have not given birth, yet are kind of guarding the newborn snakes,” Roberts said Wednesday.
As many as 2,000 rattlesnakes spend the winter at the location on private land, which the researchers are keeping secret to discourage trespassers. Once the weather warms, only pregnant females remain while the others disperse to nearby territory.
This year, the scientists keeping watch over the Colorado site have observed the rattlesnakes coil up and catch water to drink from the cups formed by their bodies. They’ve also seen how the snakes react to birds swooping in to try to grab a scaly meal.
The highlight of summer is in late August and early September when the rattlesnakes give birth over a roughly two-week period.
“As soon as they’re born, they know how to move into the sun or into the shade to regulate their body temperature,” Roberts said.
There are 36 species of rattlesnakes, most of which inhabit the US They range across nearly all states and are especially common in the Southwest. These being studied are prairie rattlesnakes, which can be found in much of the central and western US and into Canada and Mexico.
Like other pit viper species but unlike most snakes, rattlesnakes don’t lay eggs. Instead, they give birth to live young. Eight is an average-size brood, with the number depending on the snake’s size, according to Roberts.
Roberts is studying how temperature changes and ultraviolet sunlight affect snake behavior. Another graduate student, Owen Bachhuber, is studying the family and social relationships between rattlesnakes.
The researchers watch the live feed all day. Beyond that, they’re getting help from as many as 500 people at a time who tune in online.
“We are interested in studying the natural behavior of rattlesnakes, free from human disturbance. What do rattlesnakes actually do when we’re not there?” Roberts said.
Now that the Rocky Mountain summer is cooling, some males have been returning. By November, the camera running on solar and battery power will be turned off until next spring, when the snakes will re-emerge from their “mega den.”
Tahteeb, a UNESCO-recognized ancient Egyptian martial art, thrives to this day
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- Originally practiced for combat training and entertainment, tahteeb has evolved into a symbol of courage, strength, and cultural heritage
CAIRO: Tahteeb, an ancient Egyptian martial art with roots dating back to Pharaonic times, continues to thrive today as a popular cultural tradition.
The UNESCO-recognized sport involves two opponents wielding bamboo sticks in a circular arena engaging in a graceful yet intense duel accompanied by traditional upper Egyptian Saeedy folk music.
While originally practiced for combat training and entertainment, tahteeb has evolved into a symbol of courage, strength, and cultural heritage.
The annual tahteeb festival in Luxor, held each December, showcases the skill and passion of participants from all over Egypt. The event is organized by the Egyptian Ministry of Culture to preserve this unique tradition and promote social cohesion.
Ahmed Al-Shafei, festival organizer, told SPA that tahteeb is important as it helps preserve Egypt's cultural identity and fosters a sense of community. Tahteeb was inscribed in 2016 in UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
According to Al-Shafei, this year's edition of the festival, the 14th, will feature performances by folk art groups from various governorates, and is expected to attract both local and international tourists.