Religious News - Fire reveals cathedral's 13th century roof

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Fire reveals cathedral's 13th century roof

PARMA, Italy (UPI) -- A lightning strike on the bell tower of a historic Italian cathedral Thursday started a fire that revealed the original roof of clay tiles, officials said.

The lightning bolt hit the cross carried by a golden angel on the 13th century spire of the Parma cathedral, the Italian news agency ANSA reported. The lightning stopped the clock for the first time since a 1971 earthquake, revealing it hit at 2:29 a.m.

While the blaze did considerable damage to the tower and its copper roof, it also revealed the original design. Luciano Serchia, the Parma councilor for art, said the clay tiles were petal-shaped in two different colors.

''Last night's events brought to light something which we were all unaware of," he said. "Now what we need to do is go through the historic documents we have for more details."

Extinguishing the blaze took hours because firefighters used small quantities of water to avoid further damage.

Parma has said it will pay for restoration. Serchia said the job combines reinforcing support beams and "restoring its original roof so the people of this ty can again appreciate the tower in its 13th century glory."

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

This news arrived on: 10/22/2009

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