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Rue de la Bûcherie, du cul de sac Saint-Ambroise (fifth arrondissement)
Charles Marville French
The trickle of shimmering liquid on the paving stones in this view is not what it seems. The streets of Old Paris were notoriously filthy and frequently full of raw sewage, prompting one writer to observe, “A stream of black mire constantly runs through many of the streets . . . often becoming a rapid torrent. It requires no inconsiderable agility to leap across it, and the driver of the cabriolet delights in plentifully splattering its black and disgusting contents on every unfortunate pedestrian.”
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