The Underground City of Naours comes to the Centre

For the second session in the Australian Western Front Memorial Trail series, The Underground City of Naours invites archaeologist Gilles Prilaux to the Sir John Monash Centre.

When the Underground City was rediscovered in 1889, it became a popular tourist attraction, particularly during the First World War. Allied soldiers on leave visited the site and left their signatures on the walls of the galleries.

Australian inscriptions were discovered by Gilles Prilaux in 2013. A vast research project then began to identify the graffiti and associate the names, faces and stories of their authors.

Archaeologist Gilles Prilaux will be accompanied by a guide from the Underground City to lead the workshop. The introduction will put into perspective the discoveries that retrace the life of Australian soldiers who served on the Western Front during the First World War, including the historical context, and explanation of the archaeological work and what we now know about the graffiti.

Participants will then put themselves in the shoes of the archaeologist who found the signatures. With the clues at their disposal, they will try to discover the identity and retrace the story of those who left their signatures.