homeLyon, esoteric capital of France: city of witchcraft, secret societies, hub of the Knights Templars and home of Jean-Baptiste Willermoz, father of modern-day Freemasons.
Under the city, there are approximately 50 kilometers of underground tunnels. The oldest date from the Romans 2,000 years ago who used them as aqueducts; during the Middle Ages people dug them looking for water; and the most recently, modern tunnels were built for drainage.
Very few people are aware of the veritable city that lies beneath their feet as the city of Lyon has painstakingly kept the discovery of these tunnels secret. Only when obligated, have they released information regarding these underground galleries to the public.
For example: during the night of November 12, 1930, at approximately one o'clock in the morning, a violent explosion erupted causing several houses to collapse and sink into the earth on the Fourvière hill in Lyon. Forty people died, among them 19 firemen and 4 policemen as they attempted to save people's lives.
There was another event in 1963 where a few houses collapsed into the ground on Croix-Rousse hill, and again in 1977.
Bit-by-bit, Lyon municipality became aware of just how riddled with subterranean galleries the city was. Still, no word to the public.
Why does the city of Lyon choose to keep this vast underground treasure secret? Why is Lyon the only city in France and in Europe who shows no interest in its underground history? Why has there been no official archaeological studies done on these underground tunnels? Why have these not been classified as UNESCO World Heritage sites?
Mysteries.
Today, a simple man hole in the road can hide an access to the most incredible places.
(photo courtesy of Esion / Skenge)
Just hop down the well
(photo courtesy of Esion / Skenge)
and Voila!
(photo courtesy of Esion / Skenge)
A rectangular gallery under General Giraud Street in Croix-Rousse.
(photo courtesy of Esion / Skenge)
Roman galleries that have defied time
(photo courtesy of LaBuche / Skenge)
The Trident Snake reserve under Fourvière hill
(photo courtesy of JohnRoss / LaBuche)
Imagine: 50 kilometers of amazing, well preserved underground tunnels--most of them yet unexplored--none of them have undergone a proper archeological study!
(photo courtesy of Esion / Skenge)
Some have been reenforced with cement by the city of Lyon without prior study of original material. Lamantable (a crying shame)!
(photo courtesy of Youyou / Skenge)
There is a legend of an underground lake in the Fourvière hill. Shortly after the catastrophe of 1930, rumors ran abundant. "The Widow Richard" wrote a letter to the mayor of Lyon testifying to having visited the underground lake in a boat.
Rumors of sects and secret societies meeting in these underground galleries have existed for decades. A local group of cataphiles have attested to finding "burnt crosses, strange inscriptions and candles ..."
Mysterious sculptures.
(photo courtesy of Esion / Skenge)
Legend says that there is an ancient underground tunnel that traverses the Saône River, running from the ancient Templar Command Post at Saint George in Vieux Lyon to the Ainay Basilica on the Presqu'ile. People keep searching, it has not yet been found.
In 1959, municipal workers discovered a complex and ancient underground network inside Croix-Rousse hill in the city of Lyon when part of a street crumbled and collapsed into a thirty meter well. Keeping the discovery secret from the public for twenty years, city workers explored the 2.5 kilometers of underground tunnels eventually indentifying thirty-two short tunnels that branch off a main tunnel or vertebra, much like the skeleton of a fish, giving birth to its moniker "Arêtes de Poisson" which translates as Fish Bones.
Le Gros Caillou or Big Rock stands guard at the entrance to this mysterious labyrinth. No one knows why or how it got there or what it symbolizes.
(photo courtesy of Esion / Skenge)
Fifty-two years later, very few people are aware of the network's existence. Off limits to the public, a team of cataphiles (illegal urban explorers) has spent seven years meticulously investigating and mapping out this virtual underground labyrinth.
5m3 of human bones were found in one of the galleries in the Arêtes de Poisson.
More mysteries.
Gros bisous de Friday the 13th et ses mystères et à bientôt!
Love, Charley
Home
Post a Comment