From Rome's Colosseum to the Peruvian citadel of Machu Picchu, humankind has always shown a fascination with ruins. Steeped in history over thousands of years... structures and abandoned places that have become progressively derelict due to natural disasters, war and depopulation... Historians, archaeologists and anthropologists study them, tourists visit them, and artists paint and photograph them.
Paul Cooper discovered his passion for ruins after moving to Sri Lanka to work as an English teacher, where he took time to explore the ruins, both ancient and modern. And it was at the ruins of Polonnaruwa where Paul was inspired to write his first novel, River of Ink – the story of a 12th Century court poet forced to work as a translator for a tyrannical king.
Paul Cooper crouches next to the ruins of Babylon, Iraq, which are overlooked by one of Saddam Hussein's abandoned palaces.
The ruins of Babylon, Iraq, which are overlooked by one of Saddam Hussein's abandoned palaces.
Paul Cooper (centre) meeting the guards responsible for keeping the site of Uruk safe.
The ziggurat of Aqar-Quf, about 30 kilometres west of Baghdad.
Exploring the ruins of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka - the setting for 'River of Ink'.
Exploring the ruins of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka - the setting for 'River of Ink'.
Exploring the ruins of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka - the setting for 'River of Ink'.
Exploring the ruins of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka - the setting for 'River of Ink'.
Exploring the ruins of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka - the setting for 'River of Ink'.
Exploring the ruins of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka - the setting for 'River of Ink'.
Paul Cooper is an author and PhD student in ruin and memory studies.
River of Ink by Paul M.M. Cooper.
A c.1900 postcard depicts the Virginia Water Ruins in Surrey, England. (Library of Congress)
The Temple of Augustus in 2014. (Wikimedia Commons)
"Interior of the Colosseum in Rome," 1804. (Francois-Marius Granet)
"Inside the Colosseum," 1780. (Francis Towne)
The Interior of the Colosseum," c.1775. (William Pars)
"The Colosseum, Rome, by Moonlight," 1819. (Joseph Mallord William Turner)
"Interior of the Colosseum, Rome," 1832 (Thomas Cole)
"An Interior View of the Colosseum, Rome," undated
Stalin Monument sit in City Park, in Budapest. (Wikimedia Creative Commons)
The remains of the Stalin Monument sit in City Park, in Budapest, 1956. (Wikimedia Creative Commons)
“Stalin’s Boots,” Memento Park, 2007. (Wikimedia Creative Commons)
Zeppelin Field, 1937. (Wikimedia Creative Commons)
Zeppelin Field, 2004. (Wikimedia Creative Commons)
The images in this gallery are used with permission and are subject to copyright conditions.
