Inaccessible for the time being due to work on Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, following the terrible fire in 2019, France's road marker is located on the square in front of the cathedral, a veritable reference point for road markers. This kilometre marker serves as a benchmark for calculating distances to other cities in the country, for the 14 national roads leaving the capital. Consisting of a compass rose engraved in a bronze medallion, the element is wedged between the cobblestones of the forecourt, surrounded by a round stone slab, divided into four quarters.
TheÎle de la Cité, right in the middle of Paris, marks the beginning of France's roads, the focal point of daily life and a symbol of the country's centralization around the capital. Initially, this site was not at all intended as a road reference, but rather as the site of a gallows, at the foot of which the condemned knelt to beg forgiveness. It was Louis XV, in 1769, who decided to make it a milestone, but it wasn't until 1924 that a plaque was affixed to indicate it.
According to Caradisiac, a website specializing in cars, a chapel of Saint-Christophe existed between the 10th and 11th centuries, in place of the forecourt, and the saint is the protector of travelers. A ground zero that makes sense, since by extension he can protect motorists on the country's roads, just as he did for peasants in carts and nobles in carriages! We can't wait for the cathedral to reopen, so we can rediscover this symbol, just fifty metres from the central door.
Location
Notre Dame de Paris Cathedral
Cathédrale Notre-Dame
75004 Paris 4
Access
Metro - RER: - Cité (4) - Saint Michel - Notre-Dame (B,C) - Hôtel de Ville (1,11) - Maubert-Mutualité / Cluny - La Sorbonne (10) - Châtelet - Les Halles (7,14,A,D)
