Historic ruins

Ruins are the remains of human-made architecture: structures that were once complete, as time went by, have fallen into a state of partial or complete disrepair, due to lack of maintenance or deliberate acts of destruction. Natural disaster, war and depopulation are the most common root causes, with many structures becoming progressively derelict over time due to long-term weathering and scavenging.

There are famous ruins all over the world, from ancient sites in China, the Indus valley and Judea to Zimbabwe in Africa, ancient Greek, Egyptian and Roman sites in the Mediterranean basin, and Incan and Mayan sites in the Americas. Ruins are of great importance to historians, archaeologists and anthropologists, whether they were once individual fortifications, places of worship, houses and utility buildings, or entire villages, towns and cities. Many ruins have become UNESCO World Heritage Sites in recent years, to identify and preserve them as areas of outstanding value to humanity.

  • 3

    Abaujvar Castle (Place, Ruins)

    Abaujvar Castle (Place, Ruins). The castle was built by King Aba Samuel in the years 1041-1044, but in fact, the roost already existed in the 10th century.

  • 10

    Abu Mena

    Abu Mena was a town, monastery complex and Christian pilgrimage center in Late Antique Egypt, about 45 km (28 mi) southwest of Alexandria. Its remains were designated a World Heritage Site in 1979.

  • 8

    Ak-Saray Palace

    Timur's Summer Palace, the “White Palace” was planned as the most grandiose of all Timur's constructions. It was started in 1380 by artisans deported by Timur from the recently conquered Khwarezm.

  • 6

    Al-Ayn Ruins

    Al-Ayn is a small necropolis. It is located 22 kilometers southeast of Bat.

  • 2

    Al-Bagawat (El-Bagawat)

    Al-Bagawat, also spelt as El-Bagawat, is an ancient Christian cemetery, one of the oldest in the world, which functioned at the Kharga Oasis in southern-central Egypt from the 3rd to the 7th century AD.

  • 5

    Al-Baleed

    This lagoon takes its name from the ancient city which lies on the banks of this lagoon.

  • 6

    Al-Khutm Ruins

    The ruins at Al-Khutm are basically a stone fort, a tower made of rock with a diameter of 20 meters. It is located 2 km west of Bat.

  • 1

    Amadeus Aba Castle (Ruins), Gonc

    Amadeus Aba Castle (Ruins), Gonc. The Amade Castle was built between 1271 and 1288. It was first mentioned in the document in the era of King of Hungary Ladislavus IV in 1288.

  • 10

    Amphitheatre, El Jem

    El Djem is famous for its amphitheater, often incorrectly called a Colosseum (roughly translated from Latin as 'that thing by the Colossus'), which is capable of seating 35,000 spectators. Only the Flavian Amphitheater in Rome (about 50,000 spectators) and the ruined theatre of Capua are larger.

  • 8

    Ancient Acropolis of Sami, Kefalonia Island

    Ancient Sami was a powerful fortified town whose ruins are found in Lapitha Mountain, over the port town of Sami Kefalonia. This town was an autonomous and independent state with its own coin inhabited from the Paleolithic Times.

  • 9

    Ancient Merv (Merv)

    Merv was a major oasis-city in Central Asia, on the historical Silk Road, located near today's Mary in Turkmenistan.

  • 10

    Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis

    Thebes, known to the ancient Egyptians as Waset, was an ancient Egyptian city located east of the Nile about 800 kilometers (500 mi) south of the Mediterranean. Its ruins lie within the modern Egyptian city of Luxor.

  • 2

    Angustia, Roman Fort (Ruins), Bretcu

    Angustia Roman fort Ruins near Bretcu village, Covasna County, Transylvania, Romania. The Roman settlement of Angustia and the Roman fort is located on the east side of the village.

  • 10

    Anhak Palace

    The Anhak Palace is a royal residence of the Goguryeo kingdom that was built in 427 AD.

  • 2

    Archaeological Ensemble of Merida

    Today the Archaeological Ensemble of Merida is one of the largest and most extensive archaeological sites in Spain and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993.

  • 4

    Archaeological Site of Aigai (Vergina)

    The city of Aigai, the ancient first capital of the Kingdom of Macedonia, was discovered in the 19th century near Vergina, in northern Greece. The most important remains are the monumental palace, lavishly decorated with mosaics and painted stuccoes, and the burial ground with more than 300 tumuli, some of which date from the 11th century B.C.

  • 6

    Archaeological Sites of Bat

    The Archaeological Sites of Bat, Al-Khutm and Al-Ayn are an important group of necropolises from the 3rd Millennium BC.

  • 10

    Arg-e Bam

    The Arg-e Bam was the largest adobe building in the world, located in Bam, a city in Kerman Province of southeastern Iran. The origin of this enormous citadel on the Silk Road can be traced back to the Achaemenid Empire (sixth to fourth centuries BC) and even beyond.

  • 7

    Atapuerca Mountains

    The Atapuerca Mountains is an ancient karstic region of Spain, in the province of Burgos, Castile and Leon and near Atapuerca and Ibeas de Juarros.

  • 10

    Avdat (Ruins)

    Avdat, also known as Abdah and Ovdat and Obodat, is a site of a ruined Nabataean city in the Negev desert in southern Israel. It was the most important city on the Incense Route after Petra, between the 1st century BCE and the 7th century CE.

  • 10

    Aztec Ruins National Monument

    The Aztec Ruins National Monument preserves Ancestral Puebloan structures in north-western New Mexico, United States, located close to the town of Aztec and northeast of Farmington, near the Animas River. Salmon Ruins and Heritage Park, with more Puebloan structures, lies a short distance to the south, just west of Bloomfield near the San Juan River.

  • 3

    Baligrod Castle (Ruins)

    The original castle built in the early sixteenth century (16th century). Nicholas Ball Gozdawa coat of arms. It was probably a wooden building. The founder of a new brick castle already was Peter Ball.

  • 8

    Bar Fortress (Ruins)

    Bar Fortress Ruins in Bar town located on the Riv River in the Vinnytsia Oblast (province) of central Ukraine.

  • 6

    Barad

    Barad is a mountainous village in northern Syria, administratively part of the Aleppo Governorate, located northwest of Aleppo. Nearby localities include Burj Abdullah to the northwest, Kimar to the north, Aqiba to the northeast and Nubl to the east.

  • 8

    Basgo

    Basgo is a historical town situated on the bank of the Indus river in Ladakh. It was once an important cultural and political centre and is frequently mentioned in the Ladakhi Chronicles. It is known for its gompas such as Basgo Monastery and historical ruins.