Despite being simply called Paris Cathedral on the Rolife website, the masterpiece of French Gothic architecture is immediately recognisable as the Notre-Dame de Paris. I would speculate that the product is called Paris Cathedral to avoid trademark issues.
I have been lucky enough to visited the Notre-Dame, having spent time inside the cathedral, and also queued up for the walk along the parapets getting up close and personal with some of the gargoyles.
And of course, many of us have seen the devastating footage of the 15 April 2019 fire that destroyed much of the roof and the flèche.
When Rolife approached me to review their new offerings to their product line, I would not resist asking for the Paris Cathedral.
Up close the Notre-Dame has an immense presence. Whether you believe in religion or not, it is hard to deny that it is pretty awe inspiring to be in a building where constructions was started in 1163.
With the intricate stain glass windows, flying buttresses, North Façade and Cloister, flèche and the Portals. Incredible craftsmanship in every detail, every surface. I was keen to see how Rolife tackled this model.
tl;dr
The Rolife Paris Cathedral (TG511) 3D wooden puzzle is an excellent, detailed replica of Notre-Dame de Paris at a 1:460 scale. With 330 pieces and a 2/6 difficulty, it offers a satisfying challenge that took about three hours to complete with help.
Assembly is glue-free (mostly) and requires patience to avoid damaging the delicate wooden parts, particularly the small components for the flèche and mini steeples. The finished model is a gorgeous display piece that effectively captures key architectural details like the portals, flying buttresses, and laser-etched rose windows.
At A$43.99 RRP, it’s highly recommended as a great Christmas gift for model enthusiasts or history buffs, providing a rewarding building experience and a lovely talking point.
Rolife Paris Cathedral: Key Details at a Glance
Scale: 1:460
Difficulty: 2 out of 6
Assembly Time: 2 hours
Pieces: 330
Unboxing the Deconstructed Cathedral
It comes in six sheets labelled A to F. A is a small sheet that is not needed til the end. All the sheets are jam packed with parts, and they are all clearly labelled.
The instruction book takes you through every step of this journey, with appropriate warning, tips and other details in place.
There is no need for glue, although you may want some handy to lock the pieces in occasionally. To be honest there was only one piece that I had to do this with. Just a dab of art glue or wood glue that dries clear will be fine.
A small piece of sandpaper is also provided to smooth down the detached nubs, should you wish to do so.
The Art of the Build: Patience is Key
Rolife estimates that the Paris Cathedral will take two hours to assemble. It is not a race, and I would highly advise to take your time and go at the pace you are comfortable with. I got my daughter involved on the first evening and things were definitely taking longer.
Because of the density of the parts, and their intricacies, check and double check before you pop a piece out. Push at it next to where it is joined to the frame to pop it out. Avoid using tools because you could damage or leave visible marks on the wood.
Pay lots of attention to the instructions, particularly with orientation of parts. For parts that are printed, coloured or laser etched, there is always a blank side that needs to face a certain direction.
The idea is to avoid having to remove and reassemble the parts because the kit is held together by perfectly cut holes and pegs. You don’t want either to get worn down and have a loose fit.
Make your own Paris Cathedral
If you have never build your own model kit before, it is hard to describe the sense of satisfaction of building something from nothing.
Personally to me, it is a skill well beyond Lego bricks. Whilst the process is the same, building pieces up to bigger pieces, Lego is very forgiving when you make a mistake. The wooden nature of the Rolife models comes with a risk of breaking pieces very permanently.
Keep calm and build on. I cannot stress enough to do it at a pace you are comfortable with and take breaks.
The Paris Cathedral is one of their easier kits to build, there are still 330 pieces that needs to be interlocked together. Tips are given on which side needs to go in first, and if a piece needs to be locked into place by being tilted down.
Rolife does include some spare pieces, but none of these are for the major elements.
A Miniature Masterpiece
Despite being a simplified 1:460 scale model, Rolife has retained all the key elements of the cathedral. These include:
- North tower
- South tower
- the Portals
- Flying Buttresses
- Windows
- the roof
- the flèche
- the rose stainglass windows
The portals are build up with layers of details to give the depth of the doorways.
The rose stainglass windows are etched in with (likely) a laser to provide the details.
There are a lot of attention to details, and it is always satisfying to watch it take shape a piece at a time.
Most of the pieces slot right in with a moderate amount of pressure. Some areas are trickier than others and you have to maintain awareness of where you can’t put pressure on as you progress.
Take extra care when you come to sheet A and building the flèche and the four little mini steeples. The parts here are tiny and fragile. There is one set of spares here for the mini steeples. Even with my level of modelling skills, it would be a different exercise to have to scratch build a replacement part.
Random Musings
What would I have improved on? I did wish that the three rose stainglass pieces have some cut outs, but also understanding that it would have made the piece too delicate to work with.
LED lights would make for a nice addition, but that said, it would have been a technical challenge on how to run the wires, and definitely increase the difficulty.
Lastly I thought it was a missed opportunity here. With very little effort, the base that the cathedral is built on could have been in the shape of Île de la Cité for a poetic touch.
Final Thoughts and Verdict
The Rolife Paris Cathedral when finished, makes for a gorgeous talking piece on display. In the end with all the stops and starts, with help from little Missy who is half the recommended age of fourteen, it took me about three hours to put together.
It was certainly bringing up memories of my two trips to Paris, not the least the sightseeing, but also Orangina, Pain du Chocolate and some great travel stories. In fact this review gave me an excuse to dig back into my photo archives of my trips to Europe to look for photos of the Notre-Dame.
The model would come in handy as a visual aid for history lessons, or even to give perspective to the 2019 fire.
The Rolife Paris Cathedral (TG511) has a RRP of just A$43.99, and it would make for a great Christmas gift that is other than the same old same old.
DRN would like to thank Rolife for providing the review kit. I have really enjoyed the process.
Kevin when he spots good coffee
Kevin when he is waiting for his coffee
