The first photos from inside the Notre Dame cathedral showed extensive damage a massive fire caused after engulfing the historic edifice.

The altar at the helm of the beloved cathedral appeared all but entirely burned down by the blaze, as smoke still appeared to be rising from the ashes in a photo seemingly taken shortly after firefighters began containing the flames.

A golden cross was seemingly left intact, hanging above the destruction that once was the ornate focus for millions of visitors who marvelled at the longstanding structure and its global impact on culture and history.

The blaze collapsed the cathedral’s spire and spread to one of its landmark rectangular towers, but Paris fire chief Jean-Claude Gallet said the church’s structure had been saved after firefighters managed to stop the fire spreading to the northern belfry.

The 12th century cathedral is home to incalculable works of art and is one of the world’s most famous tourist attractions, immortalised by Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Notre Dame before and after Show all 19 1 /19 Notre Dame before and after Notre Dame before and after The cathedral with the spire standing tall (left) and (right) after the fire AFP/Getty Notre Dame before and after As viewed from the Montparnasse Tower before the fire AFP/Getty Notre Dame before and after As viewed from the Montparnasse Tower after the fire AP Notre Dame before and after The heart and transept before and one day after the fire AFP/Getty Notre Dame before and after The nave of the cathedral before the fire Alamy Notre Dame before and after The nave of the cathedral after the fire Reuters Notre Dame before and after The rose window in the cathedral before the fire AFP/Getty Notre Dame before and after After the fire a hole has been exposed in the roof above the window Twitter Notre Dame before and after The cathedral from the Seine before and after Reuters Notre Dame before and after Inside the cathedral before the fire Reuters Notre Dame before and after The burning roof has left a hole in the nave Reuters Notre Dame before and after The nave after the fire was extinguished AP Notre Dame before and after Inside the cathedral after the fire Reuters Notre Dame before and after A view from the Seine of the cathedral before and after the fire Reuters Notre Dame before and after An aerial shot of Notre Dame before the fire AFP/Getty Notre Dame before and after An aerial shot of Notre Dame during the fire shows the wooden roof burning and collapsing AFP/Getty Notre Dame before and after Tourists gather near the cathedral and then seen afterwards Reuters Notre Dame before and after The spire of the cathedral is shown before and during the fire AFP/Getty Notre Dame before and after A scorched section of the exterior after the fire Reuters

The exact cause of the blaze was not known, but French media quoted the Paris fire brigade as saying the fire is “potentially linked” to a major renovation project on the church’s spire and its 250 tonnes of lead.

The Paris prosecutors’ office ruled out arson and possible terror-related motives, and said it was treating it as an accident.

Flames shot out of the roof behind the nave of the cathedral, among the most visited landmarks in the world. Hundreds of people lined up bridges around the island that houses the church, watching in shock as acrid smoke rose in plumes.

Speaking alongside junior Interior minister Laurent Nunez late Monday, Mr Gallet said “two thirds of the roofing has been ravaged”.

Late Monday, signs pointed to the fire nearing an end as lights could be seen through the windows moving around the front of the cathedral, apparently investigators inspecting the scene.

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The fire came less than a week before Easter amid Holy Week commemorations. As the cathedral burned, Parisians gathered to pray and sing hymns outside the church of Saint Julien Les Pauvres across the river from Notre Dame while the flames lit the sky behind them.