page_title: Ruins
section_title: Relics of steel and wooden towers
hierarchical_section_title: Ruins / Relics of steel and wooden towers
caption_attribution_description: English: Western part of the abandoned Packard Automotive Plant in Detroit, Michigan.
context_page_description: Ruins are the remains of human-made architecture: structures that were once intact have fallen, as time went by, into a state of partial or total disrepair, due to lack of maintenance or deliberate acts of destruction. Natural disaster, war and population decline 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, ancient universities, 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.
context_section_description: As a rule, towers built of steel are dismantled, when not used any more, because their construction can be either rebuilt on a new site or if the state of construction does not allow a direct reuse, the metal can be recycled economically. However, sometimes tower basements remain, because their removal can sometimes be expensive. One example of such a basement is the basement of the former radio mast of Deutschlandsender Herzberg/Elster.
  The basements of large wooden towers such as Transmitter Ismaning may also be left behind, because removing them would be difficult.
  The contemplation of "rust belt" post-industrial ruins is in its infancy.
caption: Rust-Belt ruins of former factory, Detroit, Michigan
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