In 1875 the construction of Sacré Coeur was begun by Paul Abadie. The construction of this cathedral was symbolic of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. This cathedral was to stand as representative of the true heart of Paris. Paul Abadie planned that every architectural design would symbolize the meaning of Sacré Coeur. The cathedral was to, both symbolically and literally, represent the heart of Christ. The construction highlighted a specific value to Paris, this being: the Sacred Heart of Jesus is essential in describing the heart of the city. One can not speak about Paris without considering its heartbeat, that is the very heart of Christ. This cathedral was built to serve as a constant visual reminder of what ought to be near to the heart of the people.
Text source:
Jonas, Raymond A. “Restoring a Sacred Center: Pilgrimage, Politics, and the Sacré-Coeur.” Historical Reflections / Réflexions Historiques, vol. 20, no. 1, 1994, pp. 95–123. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/41298987?seq=12#metadata_info_tab_contents. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.
Image source:
Luce, Maximilien Luce, The Construction of the Sacré-Cœur. 1884, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Caen, Paris. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Construction_du_Sacr%C3%A9-Coeur_(Luce).jpg.