A broken piano, a dilapidated staircase, a chair half standing on two bent legs surrounded by layers of history peeling from the wallpaper of an abandoned house. The chilling air of an abandoned church, or a desolated factory, with the faint signs of the human sounds now trapped in the detritus of lost interiors. In Michigan, in Italy, in Russia, Japan, in China, the lost dreams of a teaming human horde are captured in this evocative exploration of abandoned buildings, the achievements of humankind struck down by calamity or neglect, then over-run by the ancient forces of time and nature, as the planet earth moves slowly to regain its supremacy against the noisy, mechanical clatter of the human species. The incredible new book explores the half-life of abandoned buildings and the sad beauty of desolation.

Michael Kerrigan has written widely on both the history of art and literature. Recent books on the English tradition include Paul Nash: Masterpieces of Art. A longstanding interest in the mythic and mystic traditions has given rise to books including Celtic Legends and The Bible: A Dark History, and a chapter on ‘Inklings of Other Worlds, 1946–59’ in The Astounding Illustrated History of Fantasy & Horror. A regular contributor to the Times Literary Supplement, he lives with his family in Edinburgh.