The "forest" of Notre-Dame de Paris: A possible path into medieval climate and time

Abstract

Notre-Dame de Paris, the so famous Catholic cathedral standing on Ile de la Cité in Paris, was partially destroyed by fire on April 15 of 2019. This unfortunate destruction miraculously spared a part of the frame and made these woods accessible to the scientific community. As scientists particularly interested in the isotopic composition of wood as memory of past climate and as a clock to the past, we will take advantage of this tragedy and give new life to the Notre Dame woods. In the context of a programmatic action, the δ13C and δ18O chronologies will open a window on the climate of the Middle Ages. They will allow rekindling the debate on the geographical extension of the MWP and, therefore, on its origin. The 14C record, at a yearly resolution, is expected to be implemented in the next 14C calibration curve and to be used to document past changes in 14C production resulting either from changes in solar activity or supernovae.