Warning: This website contains subject matter that relates to death and funery practices; graphic images relating to these topics will be included. Some of the bodies depicted on this website met a violent death and others may still have living relations. Please be advised about these concerns before viewing the website.
Interacting with the Parisian Dead
As we have seen, the Parisian Ossuary originated from the salt mines under the city. In 1810 these tunnels were excavated to transform the cavern into a mausoleum that is known today as the catacombs.
The first phase of the catacombs was to remove some of the bodies from the existing cemeteries to alleviate the overcrowding problems. Many of these new residents of the catacombs were the bodies of the sick such as lepers and people who died of syphilis (1). The majority of the bodies however were victims of the French Revolution of 1789-99 and the ensuing time called the Reign of Terror 1793-94. The identity of these remains greatly effected how people interacted with them.
One of the ways in which people interacted with the dead of the catacombs is through les bals des victimes (the ball of the victims) While these balls were not typically held within the catacombs themselves, though there are rumours that some may have occurred in that location, these balls were held in honour of the people interred below Paris. During the period of time known as the "Reign of Terror" it was said that over 40, 000 people were killed within France. This great massacre had a huge effect on the public as many people lost loved ones. The execution style that was prevalent during this period was the guillotine and there were many severed heads (which is reflected in the catacombs by the presences of the stacks of skulls). After this "Reign of Terror," the massacre had ripple effects that allegedly led to the "society dancing balls" known as the Bals des Victimes, where people would celebrate the dead. At these events someone could only gain admitted if they a close relative who had been guillotined. The attendees of these balls were described by one account to have worn mourning clothes or elaborate costumes with crepe armbands signifying mourning and by another source to have been scantily clad. Regardless of the specific dress at these balls one element remains the same: it was common practice to have worn a red ribbon around one's neck to symbolise the point of impact of the guillotines blade (2). The reality of these balls have been debated, but regardless of the truth, the idea of
Past
Video about the history of the Catacombs in Palermo (originated on the history channel)
Portrait of a Woman attending a Bal des Victimes wearing a red ribbon around her nick to symbolize the guillotine
http://www.historicalfictiononline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4276
the balls reflect the morbid curiosity of the time, and how the living related to the dead within the catacombs. When the Catacombs were first designed one of the ideas behind the project was to create a mausoleum of sorts. The mausoleum would have to be unique, as the people contained within had no identity. The designer hired for the project, Louis-Étienne Héricart de Thury, had a unique opportunity. Louis undertook the project to make the catacombs a spectacle that people could visit, so instead of being a place of mourning, the catacombs became a display. The way in which he accomplished the goal of making the catacombs visible was by stacking skulls and femurs into a pattern, using lost cemetery decorations to complement the walls of bones and by physical displaying deformities found among the bones (3). All this was undertaken in an effort to make the catacombs a place where the living could interact with the dead.
Sign in the Catacombs that reads "Come people of the world, come into the silent houses and your tranquil soul will be hit with the voice that rises from the inside: "It is here that the largest of the masters, the Tomb, holds the school of truth"-Tomb of Hervey
Video about touring the Parisian Catacombs
The Parisian catacombs are arguably the most visited set of catacombs in the world. People line up around the block in Paris to gain entrance into this subterranean burial chamber.
The people buried in the Parisian catacombs are unidentified, making these catacombs more approachable; the bodies are therfore dehumanized. Within these catacombs bodies were not kept intact, but were piled seperately based on body part. Because of this, there are mounds of skulls and other “decorative” displays underground Paris. Such macabre sights have intrigued people enough to encourage them to venture below. This site has become so popular that there have been cases of illegal parties or raves in the catacombs in addition to various movies using this location as inspiration.
This popularity of the Parisian catacombs makes for an interesting means of interacting with the dead. This tourist
Present
attraction, which inspired locations for movies and books, makes the catacombs a unique place to experience the dead in a way that you do not find elsewhere. Visiting the catacombs has become not about visiting the thousands of unnamed dead, but about visiting the site itself. Further details about the tourist and pop culture surrounding the Parisian Catacombs is discussed in depth on the Modern Paris page of this website.
Sources:
(1)Moller-Christensen, V., and W.H. Jopling. "An Examination of the Skulls in the Catacombs of Paris." Medical history, 1964: 187-188.
(2)Schechte, Ronald. "Gothic Thermidor: The Bals des victimes, the Fantastic, and the Production of Historical Knowledge in Post-Terror France." Representations, 1998: 78-94
(3)Daniel, S., and S. Given. "The database: An aesthetics of dignity." Database aesthetics: Art in the age of information overflow, 2007: 142-182.
Other:
Les Catacombs, L'Histoire de Paris. n.d. http://www.catacombes.paris.fr/en/catacombs/more-2000-years-history.
Nels, Jacques. "Le bal des victimes." Books Abroad, 1953: 161.
Header Picture:
http://empiredelamort.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Paris_Catacombs0000011.jpl
