Restorers have nearly finished repairing works from the museum at Paris' Arc de Triomphe, which were damaged during 'gilets jaunes' (yellow vests) protests in the French capital.
Restorers have nearly finished repairing works from the museum at Paris' Arc de Triomphe, which were damaged during 'gilets jaunes' (yellow vests) protests in the French capital.
Experts used fine tools to put the detailed models back together piece by piece. Their fractured surfaces were carefully glued back in position to model after this historic French landmark.
"It's really a work of patience because it's a three-dimensional puzzle that we have to complete," said restorer Agnes Le Boudec.
"It's long and it's not easy because there are several impact areas including various contours that have been altered and that have been smashed into small pieces,"
Bruno Cordeau, administrator of the Arc de Triomphe is confident the models will be back on display within two months.
"We are now reaching the end of the repairs we are carrying out at the monument, and we are finishing with the works.
"It took a little time to define the restoration protocols, and that's normal, it's a little more complicated than the technical things we've been able to repair so far.
"And it's rather reassuring to see the restorers who are there at work," said Cordeau.
The Arc de Triomphe was built in 1806 upon the orders of Napoleon I to honour the Grande Armée.
The iconic Paris monument houses the tomb of an unknown soldier, for whom the structure's flame is lit every evening.
