The Portal of the Virgin

We are now standing before the left-hand door of the west façade, the Portal of the Virgin. In a cathedral named Notre-Dame, "Our Lady," this doorway reads like a grand poem dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Start with the central pillar holding up the middle of the door, the trumeau. A figure of the Virgin Mary holding the infant Jesus stands there, and beneath her feet you can see a serpent. This is the key theme of the whole portal: victory over Satan, the symbol of evil, and the beginning of salvation. But why does the story of humanity's first failure appear right below the gateway to heaven? Through contrast, to make Mary's role all the more dramatic. If Eve's disobedience brought sin, the obedience of Mary, the new Eve, brought the Savior into the world. That is the theological message here.

Now look up to the arched space above the door, the tympanum. The story climbs from bottom to top. On the lowest tier are the prophets and kings of the Old Testament, with the Ark of the Covenant at the center. Here comes an intriguing symbol. The old Ark held the tablets of the Ten Commandments, the word of God. Mary carried the Word made flesh, Jesus himself, so she is the new Ark of the Covenant. The next tier shows Mary's death, with the twelve apostles looking on and angels carrying her soul to heaven, the Dormition and Assumption. At the very top, she sits on a throne beside Christ, receiving a crown from an angel as Queen of Heaven. It is the most radiant conclusion to the story this portal tells.

Finally, take in the sculptures flanking the door. Among the statues lined up to the left of the pillar, the one farthest left shows Emperor Constantine, who legalized Christianity, along with Saint Denis, the first martyr of France, holding his severed head. To the right stands Saint Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris.