The dark legacy of the Paris Catacombs - Stephanie H. Smith episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 26, 2026 · 7 MIN

The dark legacy of the Paris Catacombs - Stephanie H. Smith

from TED-Ed · host TED-Ed

Take a tour of the vast, underground network of the Paris Catacombs, and find out how this 18th century cemetery came to be.--For centuries, Parisians had buried their dead in the Cemetery of the Innocents. By the 18th century, the grounds had become overcrowded — spewing foul odors across the city. Residents worried that it posed a public health threat, and petitioned the government for a solution. But where could they move millions of remains? Stephanie H. Smith explores the vast, underground network of the Catacombs.Lesson by Stephanie H. Smith, directed by Laura Jayne Hodkin.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-haunting-history-of-the-paris-catacombs-stephanie-h-smithDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-haunting-history-of-the-paris-catacombs-stephanie-h-smith/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://laurajaynehodkin.com----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Kyanta Yap, Rebecca Reineke, William Biersdorf, Patricia Alves Panagides, Yvette Mocete, Cyrus Garay, Samuel Barbas, LadyGeek, Marin Kovachev, Penelope Misquitta, Hans Peng, Gaurav Mathur, Erik Biemans, Tony, Michelle, Katie and Josh Pedretti, Hoai Nam Tran, Kack-Kyun Kim, Michael Braun-Boghos, zjweele13, Anna-Pitschna Kunz, Edla Paniguel, Thomas Mungavan, Jaron Blackburn, Venkat Venkatakrishnan, ReuniteKorea, Aaron Henson, Rohan Gupta, Begum Tutuncu, Brian Richards, Jørgen Østerpart, Tyron Jung, Carsten Tobehn, Katie Dean, Ezgi Yersu, Gerald Onyango, alessandra tasso, Doreen Reynolds-Consolati, Manognya Chakrapani, Ayala Ron, Eunsun Kim, Phyllis Dubrow, Ophelia Gibson Best, Paul Schneider, Joichiro Yamada, Henrique Cassús, Karthik Cherala, Clarence E. Harper Jr., Vignan Velivela, Ana Maria, Exal Enrique Cisneros Tuch, and Tejas Dc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Take a tour of the vast, underground network of the Paris Catacombs, and find out how this 18th century cemetery came to be.--For centuries, Parisians had buried their dead in the Cemetery of the Innocents. By the 18th century, the grounds had become overcrowded — spewing foul odors across the city. Residents worried that it posed a public health threat, and petitioned the government for a solution. But where could they move millions of remains? Stephanie H. Smith explores the vast, underground network of the Catacombs.Lesson by Stephanie H. Smith, directed by Laura Jayne Hodkin.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-haunting-history-of-the-paris-catacombs-stephanie-h-smithDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-haunting-history-of-the-paris-catacombs-stephanie-h-smith/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://laurajaynehodkin.com----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Kyanta Yap, Rebecca Reineke, William Biersdorf, Patricia Alves Panagides, Yvette Mocete, Cyrus Garay, Samuel Barbas, LadyGeek, Marin Kovachev, Penelope Misquitta, Hans Peng, Gaurav Mathur, Erik Biemans, Tony, Michelle, Katie and Josh Pedretti, Hoai Nam Tran, Kack-Kyun Kim, Michael Braun-Boghos, zjweele13, Anna-Pitschna Kunz, Edla Paniguel, Thomas Mungavan, Jaron Blackburn, Venkat Venkatakrishnan, ReuniteKorea, Aaron Henson, Rohan Gupta, Begum Tutuncu, Brian Richards, Jørgen Østerpart, Tyron Jung, Carsten Tobehn, Katie Dean, Ezgi Yersu, Gerald Onyango, alessandra tasso, Doreen Reynolds-Consolati, Manognya Chakrapani, Ayala Ron, Eunsun Kim, Phyllis Dubrow, Ophelia Gibson Best, Paul Schneider, Joichiro Yamada, Henrique Cassús, Karthik Cherala, Clarence E. Harper Jr., Vignan Velivela, Ana Maria, Exal Enrique Cisneros Tuch, and Tejas Dc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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The dark legacy of the Paris Catacombs - Stephanie H. Smith

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This episode was published on June 26, 2026.

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Take a tour of the vast, underground network of the Paris Catacombs, and find out how this 18th century cemetery came to be.--For centuries, Parisians had buried their dead in the Cemetery of the Innocents. By the 18th century, the grounds had...

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