But think how weird it would be if the London rings were still hanging from Tower Bridge 12 years later. Though we have fond memories of 2012, most of us have moved on. What’s more, the Olympics have moved on from us. The internationalism of the modern games depends on the fact that no one nation — not even Greece — has a permanent hold upon them. To keep displaying the logo so prominently on the Paris skyline looks like a refusal to let go.

In any case, is it really appropriate to fuse this most global of symbols to a supremely national monument? The Eiffel Tower is gloriously, unmistakably French. It may be a modern, secular and republican response to its Parisian contemporary, the basilica of Sacré-Coeur but, together, the two buildings embody the soul of France. As such, the tower exists to uplift the nation, not to provide an internationalist coat-hanger.

Sadly, conserving our cultural inheritance does not satisfy the postmodern ego. The idea that we might just allow the achievements of previous generations to echo down the ages doesn’t compute with the chauvinists of the present. What survives of the past cannot be allowed to speak for itself: it must be forcibly stamped with contemporary symbols, meanings and values.

This narcissistic impulse finds many expressions. Some can be undone, like the fatuous attempts by right-on curators to “re-contextualise” museum exhibits. Others can leave more lasting scars: the ugly architectural impositions on Liverpool’s waterfront, for instance, or the staggeringly aggressive extension to the Royal Ontario Museum.

Crucially, the cultural narcissists can be resisted. When fire ripped through the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, there were those who saw an opportunity to insinuate the banalities of contemporary architecture into this precious remnant of the Middle Ages. Luckily, the glass roof merchants did not get their way. Traditional restoration triumphed over gimmicky renovation and Notre-Dame will continue down the centuries as itself.

Hidalgo’s plans for the Eiffel Tower are not as bad as the calls to “update” the cathedral. Nevertheless, Paris does have another battle on its hands. There is a principle at stake here, which is that some things are more important than the passing fancies of the present day. The iron tower may not be sacred, but it does deserve our respect.

---

Peter Franklin is Associate Editor of UnHerd. He was previously a policy advisor and speechwriter on environmental and social issues.

peterfranklin_

---