travelling-blogger

comments

The beds are still made and ready for guests, despite having been abandoned more than 20 years ago. Traces of the lives of the long-departed masters of the house can be found in every room.

Chateau de la Foret, in Belgium, has been unoccupied since the 1990s and now a photographer who ventured inside the derelict castle has released these spooky photographs of its decaying interiors.

The castle is full of antique furniture, crystal chandeliers and even dusty old clothes. The walls of the grand chateau are adorned with oil paintings, moth-eaten tapestries and crumbling frescoes.

Opulent: The drawing room is filled with antique furniture and an enormous tapestry fills the whole of one wall, while the chandelier hints at an opulent past

Ravaged by time: A bedroom with the bed still made up and covered in chunks of fallen ceiling, and antique furniture left to decay - traces of the lives of the former tenants can be found in every room

Lavish interiors: The marble stairs and walls in the hallway look almost untouched by time, although the rest of the castle has more obvious signs of decay

The grand building has fallen into disrepair since the owner died and left the castle to his descendents, who cannot decide on who should live there.

Urban explorer Maikal Goossens, 21, of Turnhout, Belgium, photographed the lavish interior of the forsaken chateau.

'When I entered the chateau it was like being teleported back in time - everything was well preserved,' he said. 'I could hear the sound of wood creaking when I walked over it. Every sound I made was amplified by the space in the enormous rooms.

Forgotten tomes: Books in the chateau's library spill off the shelves and consume every surface. What gems could be found here?

The sound of silence: A shaft of sunlight falls onto a pair of decaying chairs in on of the chateau's many rooms, left.  Right: Where did those feet in ancient time? A slowly decaying spiral stone staircase within one of the chateau's four corner towers lead upwards to the roof and turrets

Imposing: The grand building has been allowed to fall into disrepair since the owner died 20 years ago and left the castle to his descendents They cannot decide on who should live there and the place decays further by the year

An ornate circular room with two tapestries hanging in it. The opulent chateau, in Moulbaix, western Belgium, has 344 windows and is surrounded by 62 acres of land

Sad sight: A store room in the basement of the chateau is piled high with abandoned possessions, left. Right, the craftsmanship is clear in the marble stairs and hallway

'At first it was pretty scary walking around in there, but I got used to it.'

The grand castle is completed by four corner towers and is fortified by four octagonal turrets on top of the towers.

The opulent chateau, in Moulbaix, Hainaut, western Belgium, has 344 windows and is surrounded by 62 acres of land.

Mr Goossens, who works in an ice cream factory, said, 'I was amazed every time I opened a door and found what was in the room behind it.

Bygone times: An antique clock and selection of taxidermy birds sit on a mantlepiece in one of the vast living rooms

Cobwebs galore: A store room in the basement of the chateau is filled with old furniture, ornaments... and a religious icon hides behind a decaying valise

'There was a large vault and a secret staircase which led from the bathroom to the library. The dining room was very well decorated with chandeliers and a big tapestry.

'The main entrance was made of marble including the whole main staircase - it was incredible.'

The original building was built in 1502, but much of the original house and feudal fortress was replaced in 1860 by the current building.

The current castle was built in a neo-Tudor style by the order of the Marquis Du Chasteler Oswald. It was left to the descendants of Count d'Ursel Aymard, who reportedly cannot decide on a single owner, so the buidling has been left to fall into disrepair.