This country is full of beautiful historical sites and destinations.
But look a little underneath the surface and you can find an America that's often left unseen — like this abandoned home filled with long-forgotten artwork. You truly never know what unexplained mysteries lie within.
Meet Matthew Christopher. He's a photographer who has made it his mission to bring those mysteries to light. How? He's been traveling around America snapping pictures of decaying homes that have been left to rot for decades… or much, much longer.
The haunting images include family heirlooms, hanging clothes and decomposing furniture, all abandoned for mysterious reasons. Though Matthew doesn't have answers for why these homes have been left in their still-lived-in states, he does want to share the beauty captured in these stunning photos.
Scroll through below to take a visual walk through these terrifying homes and see if you can solve the mysteries yourself.
Do you think these photos are hauntingly beautiful? Let us know in the comments.
Matthew Christopher has had an interest in abandoned sites since he was a child, but started documenting them a decade ago while researching the decline of the state hospital system.
He created this series of photographs, titled Abandoned America, to capture the mesmerizing beauty and lost history of the various derelict buildings that make up our country's landscape.
Matthew documents one such lonely home that lies boarded up in a sprawling field, a gorgeous sunset in the distance.
Matthew notes, 'We live in a time where every spare plot of land is being developed and redeveloped, a time when cookie-cutter, prefabricated homes and businesses are the general rule.'
He continues, 'The failures of the past are being ignored and repeated, and many valuable pieces of our common past are falling to the wrecking ball every year.'
These photographs symbolize a responsibility we all share to confront the horrors some of these sites are witness to.
And Matthew invites us to explore these tough questions within ourselves as well.
Of course, there's an undeniably artistic element to these decayed sites.
And an immense number of social, theological, and philosophical questions these photos bring up.
The walls and ceilings of one home seem to have caved in on a forgotten baby crib.
Matthew views these photos as a sort of 'eulogy' for a way of life America has since grown out of.
He encourages us to think deeply about the significance of the rotting wood, peeling paint, and forgotten heirlooms.
It's clear that he cherishes the imperfections of these spaces and what they represent.
Natural light creates an eerily beautiful scene in yet another decrepit and forgotten bathroom.
But Matthew refuses to share the exact locations of these abandoned homes.
He wants to ensure that these buildings are left in their natural, untouched state.
Like this abandoned living room, which was left in absolute chaos.
Matthew has lectured on the art of ruins, abandoned spaces, preservation, and mental health history for Preservation Austin, the Pennsylvania State Museum, and countless other esteemed historical societies.
An entire family's furniture sits in a giant pile outside one home.
These gorgeous photos and more are available as part of Matthew's new book Abandoned America: The Age of Consequence.
These stunning images serve as a reminder of life long forgotten.
What do you think happened in these abandoned homes? Let us know in the comments.
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