Italy’s culture minister Alberto Bonisoli proposed that Italian restorers could harness their experience in rebuilding damaged cultural monuments to help repair the Notre Dame.

“The Italian government is prepared to put the Ministry of Culture’s experts at France’s disposition for the reconstruction efforts on Notre Dame,” Bonisoli said.

“[Italian restorers] have built up considerable technical skills through confronting similar emergency situations here in Italy.

“The Notre Dame cathedral is a symbol of France, but also the whole of humanity’s heritage.”

Italian Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio confirmed the government’s eagerness to help, speaking to a press conference on Tuesday.

“First of all, I’d like to send a warm embrace to the French people who are going through this tragedy,” he said.

“[Alberto] Bonisoli has spoken to his counterpart in France and said that Italy is ready to take part in the [Notre Dame’s] reconstruction.”

Italy has several recent experiences to draw on, having lost and rebuilt two theatres and a chapel because of fires in the past two decades: the 18th-century La Fenice opera house in Venice; Bari’s 20th-century Teatro Petruzzelli; and the Chapel of the Holy Shroud at the Turin cathedral, which houses some of Italy’s most precious religious relics.

French President Emmanuel Macron has called for the Notre Dame to be rebuilt within five years.

Pledged donations from French billionaires, companies and ordinary citizens for the restoration of the cathedral are approaching €900 million after just three days, a reflection of the landmark’s significance.

The first major donation to the Notre Dame came from Francois-Henri Pinault, the billionaire head of luxury goods group Kering that owns fashion brands Gucci and Saint Laurent.

Pinault pledged €100 million as the fire was still tearing through the cathedral.

Hours later, Bernard Arnault, France’s richest man and the head of Louis Vuitton owner LVMH, announced he was donating €200 million.

The Bettencourt-Meyer family, the largest shareholder in L’Oreal, soon followed suit, pledging a combined €200 million alongside the cosmetics giant.