France, Dec. 14 -- It was September 1985, and creative partners Christo and Jeanne-Claude had been trying to realise their vision of wrapping the bridge for 10 years.

The longtime mayor of Paris, Jacques Chirac, had finally given the green light a year earlier, but public safety concerns threatened to overturn the authorisation.It was three weeks after a crew of 300 had begun wrapping the Pont Neuf in champagne-coloured fabric that the final permit arrived.

Forty years later, Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo says she couldn't be happier to revive that "unforgettable moment of poetry and beauty".

She has signed off on another major installation, set for next June, on the Pont Neuf - which, as well as a working road and foot bridge, is a prot...