Paris Catacombs
Underground skull ossuary
The Paris Catacombs are a network of underground tunnels beneath Paris containing the remains of millions of people, transferred from overcrowded cemeteries in the late 18th and 19th centuries.
The bones are arranged along the walls in macabre displays.
A portion is open to tourists: We visited the Paris Catacombs and walked among walls of skulls.
The term sometimes refers more broadly to the entire tunnel system, much of which is off-limits.
- ossuaryReceptacle for skeletal remains
- skullsHead bones
- bonesRigid internal support structure
- human remainsBody after death
- mass graveShared burial for many
underground · tunnels · city of the dead · death · crypts · limestone · quarries · darkness · macabre · labyrinth · cemetery · remains · torchlight · urban exploration · illegal access · tour guide · burial · passages
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