Its only interest is provided by two relics of the past: the vast cellars or subterranean vaults with pointed arches supported by columns with Gothic capitals; and the façade of the Audience-Chamber, formerly the principal ward of the old Hôtel Dieu, the exterior of which has retained its venerable appearance and the interior, vestiges of its lofty timber-work and wainscoted vaulting.
The ground-floor of the Palais alone escaped damage from fire and the shells, thanks to a terrace of reinforced concrete.
On the left of the Palais take the Rue Carnot, destroyed by the bombardments of April, 1918.
The Rue Carnot communicates with the courtyard of the Chapter-House, also burnt, by a great gate and passage which pass right through a house.
This entrance was built about 1530, in the transition style between the Gothic and Renaissance. Its elliptical arch bears a scutcheon with the arms of the Chapter. Consoles, decorated with grotesque figures, support the beams. The points of the turrets have disappeared, a supporting shaft has been mutilated, and the carved wooden leaves of the door have been removed to the Lycée, yet the gate is still imposing.
It is the last remaining vestige of the Chapter buildings which, with their gates closing at the same time as those of the city, at the sound of the bell, formed a "city within a city." In point of fact, the Chapter was once lord of that part of the city which lies around the Cathedral, and which it administered. The canons, jealous of their prerogatives, were often in conflict with the archbishops.
DOOR OF THE CHAPTER-HOUSE COURTYARD
The Northern Transept of the Cathedral is seen in the background.
A few capitals and shafts of the ancient cloister of the Chapter, adjoining the Cathedral, were recently discovered and placed under one of the penthouses built between the buttresses of Nôtre-Dame.
Go through the gate, cross the Place du Chapitre, follow the Rue du Préau towards the Cathedral, then turn to the right into the Rue Robert de Coucy, which leads back to the Place du Parvis Nôtre-Dame.