Mosaics were one of the most popular forms of art in the Byzantine Empire. They were extensively used to depict religious subjects on the interior of churches within the Empire and remained a popular form of expression from 6th century to the end of the Empire in the 15th century.

Like other mosaics, Byzantine mosaics are made of small pieces of glass, stone, ceramic, or other material called tesserae. During the Byzantine period, craftsmen expanded the materials that could be turned into tesserae, beginning to include gold leaf and precious stones, and perfected their construction.

Rather than creating images by adding pigment to a flat surface, some artists created patterns or shapes by arranging hundreds to thousands of tiny, colored tiles. We call this art form a mosaic, a decorated surface made up of individual pieces. They consist of pieces of colored stones, shells and ivory.

The Romans constructed aqueducts throughout their Republic and later Empire, to bring water from outside sources into cities and towns. Aqueducts moved water through gravity alone, along a slight overall downward gradient within conduits of stone, brick, or concrete; the steeper the gradient, the faster the flow.

There is even a Roman aqueduct that is still functioning and bringing water to some of Rome’s fountains. The Acqua Vergine, built in 19 B.C., has been restored several time, but lives on as a functioning aqueduct.

Gravity and the natural slope of the land allowed aqueducts to channel water from a freshwater source, such as a lake or spring, to a city. As water flowed into the cities, it was used for drinking, irrigation, and to supply hundreds of public fountains and baths.

While cremation was the more common method from the formation of Rome to the mid-2nd century AD, inhumation (or burial) eventually took over as the preferred method. The body would be placed inside a coffin, called a sarcophagus, which was often massive and richly decorated.

Greek and Latin literary sources specify the coin as an obol, and explain it as a payment or bribe for Charon, the ferryman who conveyed souls across the river that divided the world of the living from the world of the dead.

The Romans believed that the soul of the dead would go underground to the river Styx. The soul had to cross the river. A coin was placed in the mouth of the deceased to pay Charon, the boatman of the underworld, for the passage across.

However, the strong smell of the Paris catacombs is apparently what all the initial signs were warning sensitive visitors about. At best, it could be likened to the dusty, incense-infused scent of old stone churches, but with an underlying malaise that can only be attributed to the contents of multiple cemeteries.

Most deaths occur when people get lost because they got into the catacombs fot a party and tried “exploring”. But it’s really rare, and doesn’t happen more than once a year.

Philibert Aspairt

3 It’s Super Dangerous And Risky For The Solo Explorer The Paris Catacombs are not safe to explore for the solo traveler. There have been instances of people getting lost or trapped. Someone even died while inside the Catacombs.

There’s a lot of catacombs around the world, but the Paris catacombs are some of the riskiest to travel through when going in an illegal way.

In the first place, the French like having dogs. When they take them out for a walk, they make their “business” in light poles and trees. Not to mention that you can find dog poop on any sidewalk, this increases the bad smell of the city. Second, there is a very high deficiency of public toilets in the city.

Over the course of the French Revolution, piles and piles of bones were dropped unceremoniously in the stone quarries that became the catacombs. The stone quarries represented more than 300 kilometres of underground tunnels on which sits the city.

This presents some advantages: you will be able to enter directly, without queueing, and it includes an audioguide, this will cost 29 euros. If you rather buy the tickets on site, it will cost 13 euros for adults, 11 euros for people aged between 18 to 26 years olds, and 5 euros for the children.

around 45 minutes