A priest entered the burning Notre Dame cathedral with firefighters to help rescue relics including the Crown of Thorns.

Jean-Marc Fournier, the chaplain of the Paris Fire Brigade, insisted on being allowed to access the Gothic building with firefighters on Monday.

Once inside, he played a role in rescuing the Crown of Thorns, according to Philippe Goujon, mayor of Paris’ 15th district.

The centuries-old relic is widely regarded as the church’s most precious treasure.

It is made of reeds and gold and said to have been worn by Jesus Christ at his crucifixion.

The Architecture of the Notre Dame Show all 16 1 /16 The Architecture of the Notre Dame The Architecture of the Notre Dame This photograph taken on November 9, 2019, shows the choir screen at Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral in Paris. - Crowds of stunned Parisians and tourists -- some crying, others offering prayers -- watched on in horror in central Paris on April 15, 2019, as flames engulfed the Notre-Dame Cathedral. Gasps and cries of "Oh my god" erupted at 7:50 pm (1750 GMT) when the top portion of the church's spire came crashing down into an inferno that has spread to the entire roof. AFP/Getty Images The Architecture of the Notre Dame This photograph taken on November 9, 2019, shows a funerary monument to Archbishop Jean-Baptiste de Belloy at Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral in Paris. - Crowds of stunned Parisians and tourists -- some crying, others offering prayers -- watched on in horror in central Paris on April 15, 2019, as flames engulfed the Notre-Dame Cathedral. Gasps and cries of "Oh my god" erupted at 7:50 pm (1750 GMT) when the top portion of the church's spire came crashing down into an inferno that has spread to the entire roof. AFP/Getty Images The Architecture of the Notre Dame This photograph taken on November 9, 2019, shows the choir screen at Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral in Paris. - Crowds of stunned Parisians and tourists -- some crying, others offering prayers -- watched on in horror in central Paris on April 15, 2019, as flames engulfed the Notre-Dame Cathedral. Gasps and cries of "Oh my god" erupted at 7:50 pm (1750 GMT) when the top portion of the church's spire came crashing down into an inferno that has spread to the entire roof. AFP/Getty Images The Architecture of the Notre Dame In this file photo taken on April 14, 2017 shows a priest wiping the Crown of Thorns, a relic of the passion of Christ- at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. - A colossal fire swept through the famed Notre-Dame Cathedral in central Paris on April 15, 2019, causing a spire to collapse and threatening to destroy the entire masterpiece and its precious artworks. The fire, which began in the early evening, sent flames and huge clouds of grey smoke billowing into the Paris sky as stunned Parisians and tourists watched on in sheer horror. AFP/Getty Images The Architecture of the Notre Dame Notre Dame interior columns, Paris. Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame Notre Dame Cathedral interior statue of Mary and baby Jesus Paris France Europe EU Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame 14th Century Painted Wood Carvings of the life of Jesus on a Choir Screen inside Notre Dame Cathedral Paris France Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame B7J9PK INTERIOR OF NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL PARIS Alamy The Architecture of the Notre Dame 14th Century Painted Wood Carvings of the life of Jesus on a Choir Screen inside Notre Dame Cathedral Paris France Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame Stained glass depicting Sainte Genevieve's life, cloister of Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, Paris, France, Europe Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame Interior of Notre Dame, Paris, France Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame Interior view of Notre Dame Paris France. Image shot 08/2008. Exact date unknown Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame Interior of the Notre Dame Cathedral with many stained glass windows and a hanging chandelier in Paris France Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame Cathedral Notre-Dame, Interior, Rose Window, Strasbourg, Alsace, Bas-Rhin Department, France Alamy Stock Photo The Architecture of the Notre Dame Nave, Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, Paris, France, Europe Alamy The Architecture of the Notre Dame France. Paris. Cathedral of Notre- Dame. Inside. Alamy Stock Photo

The relic was stored at the end of a nave in the cathedral and around 13m people visit Notre Dame each year to view it.

Mr Fournier also helped to save the Blessed Sacrement, the items used during Mass, according to KTOTV.

The priest had previously won acclaim after the November 2016 Bataclan attack, when he entered the venue, tended to the injured and said prayers for the dead.

On Monday firefighters, police officers and some municipal employees formed a human chain at Notre Dame to rescue its treasures.

They saved most of the cathedral’s relics and artwork, including a tunic believed to have been worn by Louis IX of France in the 13th century.

Firefighters worked through Monday night to secure the cathedral’s structure and facade.

The blaze destroyed the Gothic building’s roof and toppled its spire.

But some works of art remain inside the church.

Christophe Castaner, France’s interior minister, said state employees would need to wait 48 hours to enter the building and take care of the remaining artworks.

Some are too big to be transferred safely out of the building but Mr Castaner said some risks remained to the cathedral’s structure.

He told reporters that the church was ”under permanent surveillance because it can still budge”.

“We will be standing at Notre Dame’s bedside,” he added.

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