Heads of the Kings of Judah

In its desire to erase all traces of feudalism, the French Revolution systematically and seriously damaged the decor of the cathedral of Notre Dame of Paris. In 1793, the twenty eight statues of the kings of Judah on the main facade were taken down and then sold to a builder as scrap material. Considered as lost, they were reconstructed in their original positions by Viollet-le-Duc’s team in the middle of the 19th century. But in 1977, during the construction of Rue de la Chaussee-d’Antin, twenty one kings’ heads – and more than one hundred fragments of statues- luckily resurfaced. The heads had been bought in 1796, then buried with respect. It was one of the most important archeological discoveries of the last few hundred years, an important addition to our knowledge of Parisian sculpture of the first half of the 13th century.

The corbelled gallery of kings, which overhangs the level of the three portals of the western facade, was sculpted around 1225-1230. It is the oldest example of horizontal representation of the kings of Judah, ancestors of Christ through the Virgin whose statue overlooks the gallery. This monumental biblical genealogy was repeated in the 13th century on the facades of the cathedrals of Chartres, Amiens and Reims.*

*Information from the Musee de Cluny website.

16 Comments CherryPie on Dec 1st 2012

16 Responses to “Heads of the Kings of Judah”

  1. An interesting new take on “Off with their heads!”

  2. Mickie Brown says:

    Most interesting. Mickie :)

  3. ....peter:) says:

    I enjoyed your history of the Heads of the Kings of Judah very much Cherie… the sculptures look a bit worn but it is a great photo… thanks for sharing that with us….peter:)

  4. Astrid says:

    It is a miracle that these heads survived. Thank you for the story.

  5. jamsodonnell says:

    A fine collection Cherie!

  6. rusty duck says:

    They are a cheerful bunch..

  7. james higham says:

    Dear me – that’s a bit gruesome.