1. This tiny, briny town was built as scenery for 'L’enfant et La Sirène'; a musical film about a child and a mermaid.
2. The filmmakers built the set in the mid-1960s for the french film.
3. Film-makers planned to use cutting-edge technology to film scenes underwater, but the idea was abandoned in favour of animation.
4. The film was never released, but the magical set still lies abandoned on the seabed, covering a square kilometre.
5. Over the past 50 years the miniature buildings, off the coast of Cap d’Antibes in southern France, have found new purpose as shelter for shoals of fish.
6. Underwater photographer Michal Krysztofowicz, from Dublin, dived 20 metres down to photograph the surreal village.
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It's an amazing place. As you're diving down, the miniature city on the ocean floor looms out of the darkness. The visibility on the day of the photoshoot was probably around 15 metres, which is very good. The Mediterranean sea is often very clear. I was expecting something different - I assumed the buildings would be bigger, but the tallest was only about half a metre high.
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10. Left to the elements, the village had eroded until a local diving company, led by expert diver Bernard Nancey, began a restoration project in 2007.
The village is being brought back to its former glory. It's a cool project - it is a wonderful place.
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13. Curious tourists can book tours costing £40 with diver Alex Diamond.
