Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris

Notre-Dame Cathedral, completed in 1345 after 182 years of construction, stands as a pinnacle of French Gothic architecture and the symbolic heart of France. The devastating 2019 fire destroyed its spire, but a remarkable restoration completed in December 2024 cost €846 million, funded by 340,000 global donors—a sum that is 3 times cheaper per visitor than the Petronas Twin Towers' annual maintenance. This rebirth outperforms #9's rapid six-year build by demonstrating that even a 19-year restoration can restore a 861-year-old icon to global acclaim, welcoming 12 million annual visitors pre-fire.