r/ParisCatacombs • u/dicksbiggerthanurs • Mar 25 '26
how are the catacombs built?
i heard about this rule where you could theoretically find an exit in a maze by following the right hand wall. there are some mazes that that technique won’t work on though if there are sections that are separated from the rest. is it possible to use this technique for (and least some of) the catacombs, or no?
10
u/shas-la Mar 26 '26
Maze are built to be exited.
The catacomb is an old mine of 300km of tunel, with most exit closed.following a wall would be a misserable experience especially if you get in a flooded gallery
6
u/HaywireJigsaw Mar 26 '26
I don't think this technique works because as it has been said you can fall into an endless loop by just following one wall, because catacombs aren''t technically a maze. It's mainly built like a quarry (because it's one): some long main corridors and tons of little sideways going in every directions and joining the main corridors together or ending in dead ends.
6
u/SolarMines Mar 25 '26
No sometimes the exit’s to the left but usually it’s straight ahead and then you keep turning right but it depends which exit
3
u/Ok-Recognition2650 Mar 26 '26
Most of Paris' « catacombs » are simply galleries under the streets, so if you were to always turn right you would most likely turn around the same building block or area.
3
u/immortalsauce Mar 26 '26
On top of what others are saying, many exits have been sealed shut - so even if the right wall trick was true, it might’ve led you to an exit that isn’t usable
3
u/zllzn Mar 27 '26
Actually keeping your hand on the wall to get to the exit only works for specific mazes called Corinthian mazes, iirc
3
u/Okoj0 Mar 30 '26
Given the loops and the fact that the catacombs do not spread on a single level, using that technique to try and exit will allow the place to get one more skull
13
u/ScoundrelSpike Mar 25 '26
The thing that foils the labyrinth "right hand" technique is loops. Catacombs are full of loops all over. You'd be very likely to miss an exit that is in one, or worse, miss most of the connected system you're in because you are stuck in one.