The former home of France's controversial pop maestro is almost completely covered in ever-changing tributes and graffiti.

A simple plaque on the facade is the only reminder that the treaty ending the American Revolution was signed inside.

The oldest continuously operating mint in the world that has been making coins since the 9th-century.

A counter-culture bookstore like no other hides in plain sight in the streets of Paris.

This frog-themed restaurant was frequented by Picasso, Saint-Exupéry, and more.

A surrealist timepiece by the artist of melting clocks.

This iconic Parisian bookstore doubles as the "Tumbleweed Hotel" for traveling writers.

The narrowest street in Paris.

The tradition of open-air secondhand and antiquarian bookselling in Paris dates back to the Renaissance.

This former “ante-chamber to the guillotine” has been refurbished to illustrate the brutal history of French justice.

The approximate spot where the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar was put to death.

Notorious artist squat renovated into legal studios.

A Parisian exterminator's shop whose storefront displays stuffed rats hanging from traps.

A 16th-century fountain marks the site of a lost medieval cemetery once filled with mass graves.

This little-known relic crypt holds stolen parts of a Roman Empress.

With a history of slaughter, feast, and famine, remnants of the pork industry decorate this area--even its church.

The spiral staircase hidden inside this giant Parisian column was likely built for Catherine de Medici's astrologer.

Noirish green neon marks the location of one of the oldest private detective agencies in France.

This small, ingenious cannon once helped regulate Parisian life.

A grotto-like lodge decorated with gilded mosaics, rocks and a noisy waterfall was the setting for the most sumptuous pleasure house of 1900s Europe.

This off-limits room in the National Library of France is home to a system of pneumatic tubes, once used to bring books to readers.

This massive library holds what was once the largest book collection in the world.

Beggars were miraculously "cured" of their fake ailments when they returned home to this 17th century Paris slum each night.

The oldest stone house in Paris was built by its most famous alchemist.