Life-size archives
This uniquely beautiful site invites visitors to explore an out-of-the-ordinary subterranean world combining the history of men and the history of events. Quarrymen, the inhabitants of troglodyte homes and WWI soldiers have handed down to us this remarkable heritage: life-size archives to browse as you would the pages of a moving anthology.
The Montigny stone quarries, for the most part exploited during the 18th and 19th centuries, were used as shelters by combatants of the Great War. French army units transformed the quarries into quarters, command posts, first-aid stations, kitchens, chapels and a military hospital. A place of respite “sheltered from the hell above”, whose remaining sculptures and adornments bring us suddenly closer to these men at war.
An association created in 2008, La Machemontoise, is responsible for the rehabilitation of these quarries, today open to the public and the setting of numerous activities and events.
Find out more here (External link) (French website only)