Catacombes established by order of Monsieur Thiroux de Crosne, Lt. General of Police, and by Monsieur Guillaumot, Inspector General of Quarries, 1786. Restored and improved by order of Monsieur Frochot, Secretary of State, Chief of the Department of the Seine, by Monsieur Hericart de Thury, Chief Mining Engineer, Inspector General of Quarries, 1810.

Some bone heaps are more orderly than others. Many skulls are missing all bone below the cranium, and all, it seems, are missing their teeth and lower jaw bones.

Remains from the Carmes Convent, Place Maubert, placed here Jan 25, 1814.

This pattern exists throughout the tomb; the wall is composed of the lower chondyls of human femur bones, with a row of skulls about 75cm from the floor, regular patterns of skulls "quilted" along the surface of the wall, and another row of skulls topping it all off.

The distance from the wall of bones back to the actual wall of the tunnel usually measures two or three meters.

Go back to the crypt entrance.

Examine the map.

See the bones from the Trinity Cemetery.

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Copyright (C) 1997 by Kevin Kelm.