Castlevania: Belmont's Curse Notre-Dame Guide

What you need before Notre-Dame opens

Two things unlock the entrance: Brauner's Paintbrush and The Artist Arcana. Guides place the Paintbrush in the Library, after the Occultist fight at the top of the Library. The Artist Arcana, whose spell is Masterpiece, comes from Brauner's Atelier once you smash his sculpture in the Hall of Mirrors.

TheGamer notes that completing The Artist requires Smash, the ability you earn by defeating The Builder in the Clock Tower. That means Notre-Dame sits in the second half of the campaign, after Arcane Whip, Holy Light, Smash and Aerial Rush. If a door or wall still blocks your route to the Atelier, go back and finish those boss fights first.

• Smash, from The Builder in the Clock Tower
• Aerial Rush, from The Occultist at the top of the Library
• Brauner's Paintbrush, from the Library
• The Artist Arcana (Masterpiece), from Brauner's Atelier

How to enter through the Gallery of Eternal Night

Use the Mirrors of Life to save time on the way. Crouch at a mirror shrine to enter the Hall of Mirrors, pick the Elevator Tower mirror and come out near the Main Hall. From there, head west past the West Hall banner into the Gallery of Eternal Night.

Open the Equipment menu and equip The Artist so that Masterpiece is active. Then interact with the Notre-Dame painting on the gallery wall to step inside. If nothing happens, check that The Artist is actually equipped rather than just collected, because the painting only reacts to the active Arcana.

Inside, the route runs through the Narthex, where you use the whip-grapple to climb the wall, and on into the Nave. The Transept follows, and that is where purple, corrupted organ pipes stop your progress. Every route through the cathedral eventually brings you back to that blockage, so the organ is your real objective.

The Great Organ puzzle and the three Melody Sheets

To clear the pipes, drop through the Notre-Dame Undercroft below the Transept and reach the Great Organ Room. Its floor keys are marked with zodiac symbols. You play a melody by stepping on the keys in the order written on a Melody Sheet.

There are three sheets, and each is held by a spirit somewhere in the cathedral. Collect all three before you start experimenting, because each piece clears part of the corruption. The locations below come from the allthings.how walkthrough and match the community wiki's district list.

Read each sheet in your clue menu and step on the matching zodiac keys one at a time. If the sequence breaks, step off and start the melody again from the first symbol. Once all three pieces are played, the corruption lifts from the Transept and the path to the boss opens.

Death in the Transept

With the organ purified, return to the Transept. A cutscene shows Trevor Belmont held above a dark sphere, and Death appears with a full health bar. This is your second meeting with him, and unlike the Catacombs encounter, this one can actually be won.

No published guide we checked lists a reliable phase-by-phase breakdown for this fight yet. Go in with a full stock of healing items and your best weapon equipped, and learn his openings before you commit to long combos. The parry and dodge habits from earlier bosses still apply, so punish only after an attack has finished.

When Death falls, the game enters an absorption phase. Hold R1 on PlayStation, or E on PC, to absorb the Arcana and claim The Shadow, whose spell is Soul Harvest. You also unlock the trophy or achievement "Death… killed?" for the win.

Vampire Killer and Double Jump

After the fight, go to the infirmary in the Deacon's Quarter for a scripted scene with Trevor. He hands Rose the Vampire Killer, a legendary whip with 100 ATK, and the trophy "Stuff of Legends" pops. Press and hold the button shown on the item card to equip it straight away.

Double Jump comes next, at a glowing yellow door in the Choir that faces a wide gap. Leon explains the ability, and you press jump again in mid-air to use it. Your first test is the high ledge above a spike pit, and our Double Jump guide covers where it helps afterward.

Weapons and relics worth grabbing

Notre-Dame is one of the richest areas for equipment, so do not rush straight to Death. The community wiki lists five weapons, five relics and three spells across its districts. The most useful finds are summarised below with the location for each.

Beelzebub's Seal gives Rose 30% more damage but halves her maximum life, so treat it as a high-risk option. Joyeuse sits past a corridor of electric beams, which rewards careful timing more than speed. For a ranked view of what to equip, see our best weapons guide.

Optional fights and the Four Virtues

The cathedral also hides optional bosses. The wiki lists Arthur in the Chapel, who drops Excalibur and the Stained-Glass Shield spell, and a Doppelganger in the Gallery of the Four Virtues, who drops Absolution. Both are worth doing for the rewards before you move on.

The Gallery of the Four Virtues has four windows: Courage, Temperance, Justice and Prudence. The red Courage window responds only while Infernal Pyre, The Warrior's spell, is equipped. Activating it starts a Joan of Arc rematch called "Courage of Gabriel", and winning grants her blessing of Courage.

These Virtue trials tie into the late-game content discussed on our true ending page. The prophecy notes found in the gallery explain each window, so read them before you leave. Note which windows you have not yet triggered and return when you have the matching spell.

Collectibles and completion checklist

The wiki counts 33 districts inside Notre-Dame, so expect to spend real time here. It lists three Brave Heart Fragments, three Wise Heart Fragments, four ATK books, three DEF books and 19 Experience Statues. One allthings.how guide tracks 31 secret areas in the cathedral alone.

Mirrors of Life inside the cathedral sit in the Notre-Dame Undercroft, the West Triforium and the East Gallery, and there is also a Ferryman's Wharf. Activate all of them on your first visit, because Double Jump opens new paths back in Paris and the castle. Our fast travel guide explains how both systems work.

Before leaving, check the map for unexplored edges near high ledges, now that Double Jump is available. Several areas you passed earlier only open with the second jump. For the full order of the campaign, read our walkthrough and the map guide.

Frequently asked questions

How do I enter Notre-Dame in Belmont's Curse?

Equip The Artist Arcana (Masterpiece) and interact with the Notre-Dame painting in the Gallery of Eternal Night, west of the Main Hall in Dracula's Castle. You also need Brauner's Paintbrush.

How do I fix the organ in Notre-Dame?

Collect the Fugue, Sonata and Concerto Melody Sheets from spirits, then play each one on the zodiac floor keys in the Great Organ Room.

What do I get for beating Death in Notre-Dame?

The Shadow Arcana (Soul Harvest), then Vampire Killer from Trevor in the Deacon's Quarter and the Double Jump skill in the Choir.

Sources and research date

This article uses the material retained in the October 17, 2026 research. Official descriptions, developer statements, and hands-on observations are identified in the section references. Details are scoped to those sources and are not a claim of independently completed retail testing.

• allthings.how: Part 7 walkthrough, Notre-Dame and Death ↗
• Fextralife wiki: Notre-Dame ↗
• TheGamer: how to unlock every movement ability ↗
• Space4Games: how to enter Notre-Dame ↗
• KeenGamer: complete walkthrough ↗
• TheGamer: Mirrors of Life and the Ferryman ↗
• allthings.how: Notre-Dame collectibles and 31 secret areas ↗

Related guides

GuidesDouble Jump & MovementGuidesFast TravelGuidesWalkthroughGuidesMapCombatBossesStoryTrue Ending