Restoring Notre Dame: How much of the money has made it through?
When the Notre Dame Cathedral caught fire in April, people around the world quickly gathered efforts to restore the iconic Paris landmark.
However, AP reported that there have been months of delays in the pledged funds materialising, leading officials to rely on small charity donations for the repair works.
But the money has started to roll in.
Since the fire, the Notre Dame Foundation has up until the end of September received €36 million (AU$59 million) from 46,000 individuals, 60 businesses and 29 municipalities, Associated Press (AP) reported.
Last week, French billionaire Francois Pinault and son Francois-Henri Pinault signed documents to finalise their 100 million euros (AU$163.4 million) donation for the Foundation.
Archbishop of Paris, Michel Aupetit said the Pinaults’ donation pledge, which was within hours of the fire, inspired a movement.
“It came spontaneously during that evening, when we didn’t yet know whether the cathedral could be saved,” he said.
“It launched a movement that is still ongoing, because we still have 140 donations a week.”
Other billionaires and major entities also pledged millions in donations – Bernard Arnault of luxury group LVMH and the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation of the L’Oreal empire promised €200 million each.
Aupetit said authorities won’t know how long the restoration and repair project will take, or how much it will cost, until the spring. President Emmanuel Macron previously said he hopes to complete the restoration within five years.
Aupetit said the donation has so far been focused on cleaning and safety work.
Scroll through the gallery to see the progress from the Notre Dame Cathedral’s restoration project so far.