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ice notre dame, Source: Marek Hajkovsky, tatry.sk

Notre Dame ice sculpture greets visitors of the High Tatras

Notre Dame ice sculpture greets visitors of the High Tatras

19 ice sculptors coming from different European countries collaborated in creating this magnificent piece of art

The Tatras Ice Dome in Hrebienok is one of the most recognizable and visited attractions in the High Tatras mountain range in Slovakia and now it boasts a brand-new look. As is tradition, dozens of the best ice sculptors in Europe have come together to enhance the venue and make it ready to greet tourists venturing into the mountains this winter.

At the centre of this year’s ice sculpture exhibition is a giant 11.5-meter-high representation of the world-famous Notre Dame cathedral which was engulfed in a fire earlier this year. According to Lukáš Brodanský, Sales and Marketing Manager of the High Tatras “The fire that devastated the temple in April 2019 has sparked interest in people around the world. We decided to immortalize the beauty of this cathedral in ice so that people can admire it in its original form, until it has been covered by scaffolding restorers eliminating the consequences of the devastating fire.”.

International collaboration

The masterpiece was created by lead sculptor Adam Bakoš with the assistance of 18 other builders coming from all around Europe – from Germany, Lithuania, Poland, Czechia and Slovakia.

The massive sculpture is made up of 1880 blocks of ice, weighing more than 225 tons. The real challenge according to the sculptors, however, were the details – “Notre Dame was a challenge for us. It is a very complicated building; it has a lot of Gothic details that we had to work out. Ice is a very difficult material.” – stated Adam Bakoš.

The sculpture is a direct copy of the original Notre Dame cathedral western façade, stained glass windows and its three main entrances, above which one immediately recognizes the two main towers of the building.

Reaching Hrebienok is easy for anyone who wants to check out the beautiful ice sculpture – just head on over to the nearby town of Starý Smokovec where you’ll find the many available pathways up the mountain.

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