8: The Paris Catacombs

The Paris Catacombs (well, its actually an "ossuary") is one of the most famous tourist attractions in France. Floor to ceiling human bones, along with the dark, cave-like nature of the catacombs, gives this location a somber, macabre, yet intriguing appeal. For this episode, co-host Ivy shares the history of its creation and dives into the issue of ethics often brought up when discussing human remains which have been used in such a manor. (How does this tie in with anthropology, you might ask? Um…old bones…yeah, we can justify its discussion here on Odd Anthro!)
 
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Music by Joel Fazhari from Pixabay

Resources used for this episode:

Jessica Pearce Rotondi The Dark Origins of the Paris Catacombs (November 2023, updated May 2025) for HISTORY 
https://www.history.com/articles/paris-catacombs-origins 

Philibert Aspairt for Wikipedia 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philibert_Aspairt 

Les Catacombes de Paris - History 
https://www.catacombes.paris.fr/en/history