Twenty metres below the streets of the 14th arrondissement, carved into the pale limestone that built much of Paris above, a doorway carries the words Arrête! C’est ici l’empire de la Mort — “Stop! This is the empire of Death.” Beyond it rest the remains of several million Parisians, stacked and patterned along the walls of former quarry tunnels. We find few places where the city’s practical history and its ghost stories press so close together. This is Guide № 009 in The Love Paris Guide series.
In this guide
- Why the Bones Went Underground
- How the Quarries Were Mapped and Shored Up
- Visiting the Official Catacombs
- Cataphiles and the Tunnels Off the Map
- The Legends Parisians Tell
- Myths Worth Retiring
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More Love Paris Guides
The Love Paris Guide is a numbered series — one tightly focused subject at a time, each with its own downloadable collectible edition. Guide № 001 is The Baguette, Guide № 002 is Bastille Day in Paris, Guide № 003 is The Eiffel Tower, Guide № 004 is Parisian Café Wine Culture, Guide № 005 is Parisian Café Etiquette, Guide № 006 is Parisian Cocktail Culture, Guide № 007 is Parisian Street Music & Buskers, Guide № 008 is The Beret, This is Guide № 009. More editions are on the way.