Review: 21061 Notre-Dame de Paris
Posted by Huw,
All eyes will be on Paris this year with the Olympics taking place in the French capital during the summer, so it is perhaps not surprising that LEGO is releasing a model of one of its most important buildings as well as one of its most famous art exhibits.
21061 Notre-Dame de Paris is significant because it's the first model of a place of worship released since a church in 1958 [1]. This puts an end to LEGO's policy of not making models of religious buildings and, in my opinion, not before time given their architectural significance and beauty.
Summary
21061 Notre-Dame de Paris, 4,383 pieces.
£199.99 / $229.99 / €229.99 | 4.6p/5.2c/5.2c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
A highly detailed and attractive model of a beautiful building
- As accurate as can be expected given the limitations of the medium
- Elaborate design inside and out
- Construction necessitates lining up hundreds of 1x1 pieces
- Smaller than you'd expect, but parts-dense
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
[1] Admittedly, there have been some in the Architecture skylines, but they have not been the sole focus of the set.
Reference
Notre-Dame de Paris is a medieval Catholic cathedral built in the French Gothic style which is situated on an island in the Seine river in Paris, France. Construction began in 1163 and was completed by 1260. It's been modified and restored during subsequent centuries and is currently being repaired following a devastating fire in 2019 that destroyed the roof and spire.
By Ali Sabbagh - Notre Dam De Paris, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=84033306
By Peter Haas, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=32131500
Box
The sturdy flip-top boxes that Architecture sets came in for many years are a thing of the past, but this one comes in a type that I have not encountered before.
Rather than having to slit tape seals at one end and tipping the contents out, the whole lid lifts off, which means that the bags can remain in the box until they are needed. The inner white box is the same. Obviously, I had to remove it, take the lid off and return it to the box to take this photo.
Construction
The eastern section of the building was completed in 1182 and served as a functioning church while construction continued on the rest of it.
Building this section first is replicated in this model, which not only makes constructing it historically accurate but also serves to add variety to the building process: you are not laying down tiles on the floor all at once, for example.
One thing quickly becomes apparent, though, is that this is an intricate model that is going to take time and concentration to build. There is a lot of repetition, although the repeated sub-assembles are relatively small and simple. That did not bother me as much as stacking hundreds of 1x1 pieces and ensuring they are square, which is fiddly and time-consuming.
I've tallied the number of 1x1 bricks, plates, tiles, clips and so on in the inventory, and there are around 1,900 of them, which is around 43% of the pieces in the set!
Once the right-hand section is completed, the remainder of the building is added to it, with the process following the stages of construction of the real building.
There is considerable detail inside, including the distinctive black and white tiled floor, and the pillars and arches separating the central nave section from the ambulatories down each side. It's largely hidden from view when the model is complete, so appreciate it at this stage of construction while you can.
The completed model
The base of the model measures 41 x 22cm and the spire rises to a height of 33cm.
The set's 1,900 1x1 pieces have been put to good use, providing a wealth of intricate details on every facet, which capture the building's French Gothic architecture competently.
A row of trees partially obscure the south side of the cathedral just as they do in Paris. If you look at the photograph above you'll notice a small building in front of it, an annexe that houses the sacristy. This is missing from the model, perhaps understandably, as including it would increase the footprint considerably.
The south and north walls are exactly the same, and are punctuated by a doorway to the transept, above which is one of three stained-glass rose windows. This is represented here by a printed 4x4 transparent dish. Comparing it to the photo above, it should probably be a bit larger and the wheel above it slightly smaller.
The stained-glass windows between the buttresses are not coloured, but formed using 1x1 trans- and trans-black plates and tiles.
The correct number of buttresses flank the sides and the rounded chancel end.
Each buttress supports two flying buttresses. The top one is formed using candlesticks while the lower one utilises a droid arm. I am certain that the designer of that piece did not anticipate it being put to this use 25 years later!
The 2l bars sticking out horizontally from the top of them represent some of the building's famous gargoyles.
The west face of the building is that which it is approached and entered from. It has three doorways within arches of varying designs. This is replicated here, although the one on the right is not particularly accurate. The two bell towers, with black louvred arches, on the other hand, look spot-on. Below the towers, fairy wands are quite effectively used as thin pillars with ornate stone arches above them. Above the three arched entranceways, 1x1 cones represent a row of statues, although there should be many more of them.
The roof lifts off in one piece to reveal the interior although not much of it can be seen between the arches of the vaulted ceiling.
The lead spire, destroyed in the recent fire, rises from the centre of the roof, surrounded by nanofig statues.
Verdict
This is an incredibly detailed and accurate model of a spectacular and world-famous building. It requires more dexterity and concentration to build than usual, but if you put in the time and effort to align every piece correctly, the end result looks spectacular.
It has to be said, though, that the completed model looks smaller than you'd expect for a set with over 4,300 pieces in it. But, as I've already stated, 43% of them are 1x1s. This is reflected in the price which, at US$229.99 / £199.99, does seem reasonable for the size of it.
It's about time LEGO included cathedrals in the Architecture line, given their historical and architectural significance, and worldwide renown. I hope there are more to come.
It'll be available at LEGO.com from June 1st.
203 likes
66 comments on this article
Best architecture set hands down. Mainly because the nature and "Architecture" (hehe) of the building lends itself really well to Lego form.
Also, those wands for the signiture columns is absolutely brilliant!
This is only the second ever "place of worship" if you restrict yourself to western / christian churches. For example, the Taj Mahal, while being a tomb and not a temple, is decorated with Koran verses. Orient Expedition has a Buddhist Temple. The Chinese New Year sets feature a temple facade and a religious procession.
When we also include fantasy themes there's even more examples - eg. the Johnny Thunder sets feature an Egyptian temple and a Ninjago has a few temples as well; I remember seeing an Aztec inspired temple in some set as well. It's a stretch, sure, but there's an actual Temple Of Doom in the Indiana Jones series, and technically the Jedi from Star Wars are a religion ;)
Are there any stickers?
That's got to be the smallest 4,000 piece LEGO model I've ever seen. Brilliant!
I think the architecture line is indeed the best place to open up this policy. Notre-Dame is an amazing building, religious or not.
It could be nice to see them explore such buildings in the modular line too, since they are staples in almost every city, without necessarily borrowing too much from existing religions.
Nitpicking when I say those droid arms did not come out until 2007, they did not exist in 1999.
"Recent" fire was 2019. I was there that sad day.
...but how does it compare to the shadow box version? ;-P
@MZ_1 said:
"Are there any stickers?"
No
This is a lovely-looking kit. It is going on my wish list for certain. I was in Bayeux, Normandy, last August and visited the local Notre Dame cathedral - it is almost a thousand years old. Simply wondrous that such construction was done with building materials, tools, and techniques prevalent at the time.
No exclusive Quasimodo minifigure that’ll make the set scalper-bait, only for it to be released in a microfighter a few months later?
@nushae, in all those cases the 'place of worship' is either (a) not the main focus of the model, or (b) fictional.
@MZ_1, no stickers.
@SolidState, yes you are right, they are the later version, thanks.
Really like it but I have no interest in the source material so it’s not for me. If on the other hand they did a Tower Bridge or Big Ben at this scale I’d be interested. Sadly missed out on the previous models
It looks great. Fabulous techniques.
And an nicely detailed interior too.
On my must buy list.
Just with the flying buttresses had that arched look somehow. Maybe with the flexible tubing Lego has could've remedied that.
Can't wait to see a big LEGOtuber do a video of setting this on fire
Just curious - are there any crosses depicted in the build? Are there any obvious ones in the actual building that were modified, simplified, or eliminated? Just wondering how Lego might handle direct religious imagery like that.
@Huw:
Ashnflash on YouTube made short about the new box style. Any big sets from this year will be getting that type of box. His example was the HP great hall.
Stunning!
@agrahmann said:
"Just curious - are there any crosses depicted in the build? Are there any obvious ones in the actual building that were modified, simplified, or eliminated? Just wondering how Lego might handle direct religious imagery like that."
Like many churches it is built in the shape of a cross^^
Hopefully with Lego dropping the ban on religious buildings we will soon be getting a Jedi Temple.
WOW, that thing is beautiful. I don't go for Architecture sets, but this one is really astounding as a display piece. Will need to consider it if I see a discount, which is of course not likely with these sets.
Gorgeous set, and likely to be one of those "all-timer" classic sets that you really must own if you have any love for history, Paris, or architecture.
Any Lego set over $100 is one that I have to consider long and hard before I buy it, so IDK if I'm getting this yet, but it's definitely on my radar. It's just too beautiful and I *love* intricate builds.
Does it have the same ratio, as the Eiffel Tower set? :)
I think bigger with a likely similar piece count would have done better justice but there’s some heart in this design.
Definite "must buy" for me, especially as I tried to collect as many as possible of the English semi-authorized cathedrals released just before the pandemic (during a run of "help build our cathedral in Lego" fundraisers). I wonder if the success of those builds and sets helped make TLG more comfortable about releasing a cathedral as an official set? Even if not, I'm delighted to see this, and I hope more places of worship will be added to the Architecture line in due course!
Love this set, even it is expensive.
Wondering about the new box design, don't like the press in opening, hope this not in a similar style.
Stunning set but I really hate aligning 1x1 pieces so will probably pass.
@daniellesa said:
"Love this set, even it is expensive.
Wondering about the new box design, don't like the press in opening, hope this not in a similar style."
It can be opened without destroying it and reused to keep the pieces in more easily should you dismantle the set.
@Huw Thanks for the review. Is the box easily flattenable, either by just unfolding, or by splitting a few glue joints?
Funny thing is Notre Dame still isn't finished. I don't just mean the post-fire restoration isn't done. Even before 2019, it wasn't complete. The two front towers were intended to be mounted with steeples (see Cologne Cathedral) but work on them kept getting postponed. Theoretically, they're still missing. Adding them to 21061 would make for an interesting MOC especially if you could easily detach them.
Looks great but I have no relation to the source material (unfortunately)
Nooo! Not the flip boxes again. These were dreadful with the SW sets a few years back.
@sjr60 said:
" @Huw Thanks for the review. Is the box easily flattenable, either by just unfolding, or by splitting a few glue joints? "
No it's not.
@MegaBlocks said:
"Nooo! Not the flip boxes again. These were dreadful with the SW sets a few years back."
Which sets?
@nushae said:
"This is only the second ever "place of worship" if you restrict yourself to western / christian churches. For example, the Taj Mahal, while being a tomb and not a temple, is decorated with Koran verses. Orient Expedition has a Buddhist Temple. The Chinese New Year sets feature a temple facade and a religious procession.
When we also include fantasy themes there's even more examples - eg. the Johnny Thunder sets feature an Egyptian temple and a Ninjago has a few temples as well; I remember seeing an Aztec inspired temple in some set as well. It's a stretch, sure, but there's an actual Temple Of Doom in the Indiana Jones series, and technically the Jedi from Star Wars are a religion ;)"
Or last year's 6444659, which was literally an idol for the current-day worship of Caishen. I don't recall that even being noticed on Brickset, let alone being controversial. But a model of a church has to be justified as "art." Something is amiss when Jesus has to be explained away and excused, but a god of Wealth doesn't.
As to the Jedi, it only makes sense to treat a fictional religion differently from a real one if religion is merely a cultural decoration instead of what religions claim themselves to be—competing definitions of truth. If you take religious claims seriously, then you take the doctrine of Star Wars seriously too, because it involves serious subjects where truth exists. Star Wars may be fictional, but pantheism, the personal nature of God, the nature of the soul, the hierarchy of good and evil, purpose of miracles, spiritism, etc. are subjects of tremendous significance to religious believers.
I am delighted to see a church made out of Lego, irrespective of the artistic merit of the subject. I would love to see Lego make topical sets for Christian observances as have been done for Taoism or Chinese folk religion. Playmobil has made nativity scenes for years, and they're wonderful.
@Huw, while it was built by/on behalf of the church, and is used as a place of worship (obviously excluding the past few years), the fact that it's owned by the French government could possibly account for why this was considered acceptable in spite of the ban on religious iconography. I wouldn't say for sure that this is the case, but France is a unique case in this regard.
@nushae said:
"This is only the second ever "place of worship" if you restrict yourself to western / christian churches. For example, the Taj Mahal, while being a tomb and not a temple, is decorated with Koran verses. Orient Expedition has a Buddhist Temple. The Chinese New Year sets feature a temple facade and a religious procession.
When we also include fantasy themes there's even more examples - eg. the Johnny Thunder sets feature an Egyptian temple and a Ninjago has a few temples as well; I remember seeing an Aztec inspired temple in some set as well. It's a stretch, sure, but there's an actual Temple Of Doom in the Indiana Jones series, and technically the Jedi from Star Wars are a religion ;)"
You forgot 21037
That’s the biggest place of worship in the world.
They should include microfigure of Quasimodo and La Esmeralda
It looks fantastic. I hope they do other similar ones in future. I'm glad they are taking a slightly more grown up point of view. These sets are not toys, they are models.
Interesting Box design. The fade out of plastic bags however takes way longer than I expected. I thought this would come in paper bags.
Excellent model and review. Thanks @Huw.
@doe said:
"Interesting Box design. The fade out of plastic bags however takes way longer than I expected. I thought this would come in paper bags. "
Agreed -- fewer of our review sets have had them than we expected. The cat has them but other large sets I've built lately don't.
Does that mean the cat is out of the bag??
:-)))
Where are the hundreds of 1x1 pieces? I don't see them on the pictures.
@fakespacesquid said:
" @MegaBlocks said:
"Nooo! Not the flip boxes again. These were dreadful with the SW sets a few years back."
Which sets?"
Sets like 7931. A lot of the SW sets at the time had this awful flip box design which are awkward for flattening.
@MegaBlocks said:
" @fakespacesquid said:
" @MegaBlocks said:
"Nooo! Not the flip boxes again. These were dreadful with the SW sets a few years back."
Which sets?"
Sets like 7931. A lot of the SW sets at the time had this awful flip box design which are awkward for flattening."
It's not a flip top, it detaches completely.
@Huw said:
"It's not a flip top, it detaches completely."
OK, the original architecture sets were fine for flattening, but those boxes they used 10 years ago for SW were awful, this new box design sounds awkward for flattening too.
The Grand Piano and those premium Technic cars have boxes that can't be flattened.
Come on @Huw photographic evidence required.
Steps needed to convert the new boxes back into their original flat card state for storage.
Un-Origami for beginners!
@sjr60 said:
"Come on @Huw photographic evidence required.
Steps needed to convert the new boxes back into their original flat card state for storage.
Un-Origami for beginners!"
Tiago's review shows the new box style and how it can be flattened for storage.
@Huw said:
" @nushae , in all those cases the 'place of worship' is either (a) not the main focus of the model, or (b) fictional."
What about 21015 ? The Leaning Tower is the campanile (freestanding bell tower) of Pisa Cathedral
as an Asian with no insight about what is this, the first impression is a harry porter set with set number started with 21XXX
@SpaceCadet01 said:
" @Huw said:
" @nushae , in all those cases the 'place of worship' is either (a) not the main focus of the model, or (b) fictional."
What about 21015 ? The Leaning Tower is the campanile (freestanding bell tower) of Pisa Cathedral
"
But not itself a place of worship.
Nice set. Same line as the Taj Mahal. Maybe they will reconsider going into the military line....... Talk about a fortune & a whole new line of buyers/collectors!!!!
@bigginsd said:
" @nushae said:
"This is only the second ever "place of worship" if you restrict yourself to western / christian churches. For example, the Taj Mahal, while being a tomb and not a temple, is decorated with Koran verses. Orient Expedition has a Buddhist Temple. The Chinese New Year sets feature a temple facade and a religious procession.
When we also include fantasy themes there's even more examples - eg. the Johnny Thunder sets feature an Egyptian temple and a Ninjago has a few temples as well; I remember seeing an Aztec inspired temple in some set as well. It's a stretch, sure, but there's an actual Temple Of Doom in the Indiana Jones series, and technically the Jedi from Star Wars are a religion ;)"
You forgot 21037
That’s the biggest place of worship in the world."
And 10272.
53 Comments
Design/Build - 18
Religious/Worship - 15
Packaging - 12
Other - 8
We are such a weird group. :o)
Whilst it looks amazing, i found building the Big Ben set very tedious and this looks like the same sort of build.
@Joce1275 said:
" @sjr60 said:
"Come on @Huw photographic evidence required.
Steps needed to convert the new boxes back into their original flat card state for storage.
Un-Origami for beginners!"
Tiago's review shows the new box style and how it can be flattened for storage."
It seems Tiago flattens only the cover/top part, not the box containing the bags.
@Huw said:
" @SpaceCadet01 said:
" @Huw said:
" @nushae , in all those cases the 'place of worship' is either (a) not the main focus of the model, or (b) fictional."
What about 21015 ? The Leaning Tower is the campanile (freestanding bell tower) of Pisa Cathedral
"
But not itself a place of worship."
I pray it doesn't fall over.
(ba-dumb-bump, ting!)
@CCC said:
"It looks fantastic. I hope they do other similar ones in future. I'm glad they are taking a slightly more grown up point of view. These sets are not toys, they are models. "
"But... it says 8 and up on the box."
This does look amazing! Especially when compared to the simultaneously announced Mona Lisa, which looks appalling... Personally I'm pleased that TLG has broken their moratorium on religious buildings for the Architecture line as so many of the world's greatest buildings were built in service of a religion. And as has been pointed out above, there are arguably plenty of less obvious examples already; the Great Pyramid and the Taj Mahal to name two.
I'm not remotely surprised by the number of 1x1s; it's inevitable to build an intricate structure at this scale, and it also means that the final result doesn't require a new shelf which for me at least is a positive. I imagine the build is somewhat repetitive, but that's not really avoidable.
Not sure I'll get it; but it's definitely going on the wanted list! Thanks for the review.
I think this is a glorious set. I loved it. And I think Notre-Dame is beyond a religious building at this moment. It's one of those structures that shows of the skill and creativity of some special people.
I think next in line is La Sagrada Familia. Now that wil be a challenge to create with Lego.
@yellowcastle said:
"And 10272."
And when LEGO do a UCS toilet block, you can make the same joke.
Wow, this is really beautiful. Great set!
@StyleCounselor said:
" @CCC said:
"It looks fantastic. I hope they do other similar ones in future. I'm glad they are taking a slightly more grown up point of view. These sets are not toys, they are models. "
"But... it says 8 and up on the box.""
They have to put that there
@CCC said:
" @yellowcastle said:
"And 10272."
And when LEGO do a UCS toilet block, you can make the same joke."
All kidding aside, I can almost guarantee you we’re getting a potty at some point and it’s going to be spectacular.
I'm not into the Architecture-line, at all - but dang, this is a work of beauty.
Hi!
LEGO, please, more cathedrals. And similar buildings. And do not forget the 20th century's cathedrals: the train stations :D