
How the Paris Catacombs Solved a Cemetery Crisis - Vigier
https://daily.jstor.org/how-the-paris-catacombs-solved-a-cemetery-crisis/
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MaanuAir
And I can assure you that reading the story is quite far from actually living
the experience of walking through these tunnels. Sometimes insane (like « get
me out of there ! »), and sometimes it just make you think about your own
mortality, thanks to the writings.

Disturbing, but in a constructive, human way. Well, at least for me.

And profit-making, btw.

Edit: added missing « mortality »

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m-p-3
The sheer amount of bones makes you wonder how many souls ended there, a truly
unique sight.

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basementcat
It made me think of myself as a bag of cells that leave behind a mineral
deposit after several decades. The large concentrated piles of such "mineral
deposits" in the catacombs prompted me to consider all the people who
contributed (physically, intellectually, artistically) to building the great
city throughout the centuries. Definitely a worthwhile visit!

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orpheline
Medieval Christian cemeteries often overfilled, especially if the cemetery was
thought especially holy. Demand was so high in some places graves were
regularly reused: the bones were exhumed and stacked wherever they would fit.

For a spectacular answer to the "What do we do with all these bones?"
question, check out the ossuary at Sedlec in the Czech republic:

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedlec_Ossuary?wprov=sfla1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedlec_Ossuary?wprov=sfla1)

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techer
One of the "Magnificent Seven" London cemeteries had an open day recently and
I went into the Catacombs and learned about the history... Popular in Europe
so the shareholders of the Brompton Cemetery decided to speculate so
constructed them but in the end it wasn't a money spinner and they went bust.
I wouldn't actually recommend going down into the Catacombs. Coffins falling
to pieces on shelves basically.

