Europe

French Billionaire Pinault Pledges $113 Million to Reconstruct Notre Dame

HOPE

“Faced with such a tragedy, everyone wishes to revive this jewel of our heritage as quickly as possible,” he said.

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The family of French billionaire François Pinault has promised to donate €100 million ($113 million) to reconstruct Notre Dame cathedral following a blaze that collapsed its spire and caused large parts of the ceiling to cave in, CNN reports. “This tragedy strikes all the French, and well beyond that, all those dedicated to spiritual values,” said François-Henri Pinault, Pinault’s son who is also president of the Artemis Group holding company that includes the fine arts auction house Christie’s. “Faced with such a tragedy, everyone wishes to revive this jewel of our heritage as quickly as possible.” The 800-year-old cathedral erupted in flames Monday evening. The cause of the fire remains unknown.

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