P. Marlin May 2015

The Montmartre Cemetery opened in 1825. It was initially known as la Cimetière des Grandes Carrières (Cemetery of the Large Quarries) with the name referencing the cemetery's unique location, an abandoned gypsum quarry. The quarry had previously been used during the French Revolution as a mass grave. Today, it's a beautiful and peaceful cemetery with a small portion under a major highway. I visited the cemetery in May 2015 to see the gravesites of Adolphe Sax and Charles-Henri Sanson.

The entrance area of the cemetery

A busy highway just above these mausoleums.

The main reason I visited this cemetery was to see the gravesite of Adolphe Sax, the inventor of the saxophone.

A nice plaque adorns the outside of the gravesite.

Inside the Mausoleum.

Cemetery selfie: Having played the saxophone for over 30 years, it was important to pay homage to the inventory of the instrument.

Another grave I wanted to see was that of Charles-Henri Sanson. Charles was the Royal Executioner of France during the reign of King Louis XVI and High Executioner of the First French Republic. He administered capital punishment in the city of Paris for over forty years, and by his own hand executed nearly 3,000 people, including King XVI himself. Charles-Henri Sanson was the fourth in a six-generation family dynasty of executioners

A cat sighting in the cemetery.