Due to this unfortunate episode and various features of the building, including an underground lake, this opera house in Paris has inspired one of the most celebrated novels of all time, The Phantom of the Opera, written by Gaston Leroux in 1909. A tragic incident occurred on the evening of when a counterweight broke loose from one of the massive eight-ton chandeliers and plunged from the great height of the ceiling, crushing a woman and wounding bystanders. In addition to its historical significance, various happenings and attributes of the Palais Garnier have inspired several works, including a world-renowned novel. Upon its opening on January 5, 1875, the Paris Opera was the largest opera house in the world, featuring more than 2,000 seats for guests.

It had been delayed for several reasons, including the Franco-Prussian War, when it was used as a warehouse, and an 1873 fire that completely destroyed the interior structure. Commissioned by Emperor Napoleon III as part of the Parisian reconstruction of the Second Empire, the Palais Garnier was designed by Charles Garnier and was completed after fourteen years of construction.

Paris opera house fire