American photojournalist Stephen Alvarez explores the hundreds of miles of tunnels that comprise the Paris underground for the cover story of this month’s National Geographic. While many of these locations (like The Catacombs) are open to the public, some of Paris’ quarries have been strictly off-limits since 1955; rule-breakers, also known as “cataphiles,” have used these subterranean spaces for everything from creating art to throwing wild parties to scuba diving (!) to simply exploring unmapped territory. Click through to take a look.
The Catacombs. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
This 12th-century quarry supplied stones used to build Notre Dame. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
The Wave, a piece by French graffiti artist Pyscos. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
Members of the Paris Fire Brigade do water training exercises in Canal St. Martin. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
The reserves of the Bank of France. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
A flame thrower at a gathering in an old quarry. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
A French artist at work underground. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
A spot known by cataphiles as “Le Cellier.” Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
Sculptures found in the catacombs beneath Parc Montsouris. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]
A pair of cataphiles heads for the surface. Photo credit: Stephen Alvarez. [Image via designboom]