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(#4) One Man's Body Was Found Steps From The Exit
Authorities attribute only one confirmed death to the Paris Catacombs. In 1793, Philibert Aspairt went into the catacombs. Officially, no one knows why Aspairt ventured beneath the city, but according to legend, he was looking for a hidden cache of alcohol. Armed with only a candle, he went in.
Eleven years later, they found his body, which was heartbreakingly close to an exit.
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(#11) The Catacombs Were Originally Quarries Used To Build Paris
Paris's foundation is a massive limestone deposit formed over the past 45 million years. When the Romans mined the city, they established huge quarries that formed 187 miles of tunnels under the earth. Those same quarries would go on to provide the necessary materials to build Parisian landmarks like the Louvre and Notre-Dame Cathedral.
Later abandoned, the mined quarries inadvertently created the perfect storage solution for Paris’s substantial corpse problem.
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(#6) We Don't Know The Full Extent Of The Catacombs' Sprawling Layout
Experts have a difficult time trying to figure out exactly how much ground the catacombs cover, and what unexplored corners may still exist underground. The Paris Catacombs go at least 300 feet deep. Additionally, chambers and chasms became filled with water over the years, but there’s not much technical information to go off of from there.
Because of the catacombs' hazardous nature, the city sealed off much of the underground passageways, and only about one mile of tunnel space is open to the public. Officials recommend guides even for this section, but don't mandate them. Visitors should refrain from venturing beyond the tunnels available to the public. It is too easy for someone to get lost if they were to go off on their own.
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(#7) Exploring The Catacombs Can Be Life-Threatening
The catacombs are an inherently unnerving place to visit, and also dangerous to the ill-prepared. There is no definitive map of the dark, unstable passageways beyond the small section open to the public. Accordingly, a single wrong turn is enough to disorient someone to the point of becoming lost. It's a terrifying prospect, wandering underground, surrounded by bones, with no idea how to find daylight.
However, this isn't necessarily a death sentence, as a 17-year-old and 16-year-old found out in 2017. The teens spent three days lost in the catacombs. Fortunately, the authorities saved them after rescue dogs tracked them down. The pair went to a hospital for hypothermia treatment.
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(#1) A Controversial Video May Show A Man Who Died In The Catacombs
In the early 2000s, a video reportedly recovered from a dusty camera found in the catacombs aired on several TV channels. The director, who released the video as a part of a documentary on haunted locations, said he received the camera from so-called "cataphiles," unauthorized catacombs explorers. The origins of the video are murky, leading many to claim the video is a hoax.
Regardless of whether it's a fact or fiction, the video is chilling as it shows a man growing progressively unbalanced, panicked, and lost. No one knows what happened to the man in the video, which leads speculators to assume he died in the catacombs. Viewers pore over the video for clues like markings on the walls and mysterious, muffled sounds.
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(#3) A Mysterious Group Hosted Illegal Movie Screenings And Parties In The Catacombs
People are still discovering secrets inside the catacombs. In 2004, the Parisian police explored a formerly remote section of the catacombs as a part of their training routine. In their search, they encountered a sign warning people to turn back due to construction, even though there were no official development plans in the area. After they passed it, they heard the sound of dogs growling and barking in the darkness. They found out the commotion originated from a recording played over a sound system, likely installed to scare off curious intruders.
As the police pressed on, they uncovered an elaborate setup inside a more than 1,600-square-foot cavern, complete with a sizable movie screen, as well as seats chiseled into the catacomb stone. The makeshift cinema neighbored a bar and eatery wired with electricity and phone lines.
The officers eventually exited the site. When they returned a few days later to analyze the scene further, they found the phone and power lines shut off, as well as a note awaiting them, which read, "Do not try to find us."
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The Paris Catacombs is also known as the Tomb of Skulls. It is located in the Place Danfer-Rochereau in the 14th district of Paris today. It was originally an underground limestone quarry. In 1786, a plague broke out in Paris. In order to solve the problem of the insufficient cemetery and public health crisis, people transferred the bones buried in all cemeteries in the city. Since then, it has been used as a cemetery until 1814.
The Paris Catacombs is a museum now, and there is a small part of the tomb for public visiting. Do not be upset if you do not have a chance to visit it, there are some detailed information and pictures of the historical sites of the 18th century.
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