Deserted, decaying and crumbling into the sea. Visitors to this
abandoned settlement could be forgiven for thinking they had
entered a long-forgotten war zone. However, this is Gunkanjima -
Japan’s rotting metropolis. And it has been described as the
most desolate place on Earth. Gunkanjima is a deserted island of
concrete that is slowly crumbling away on Japan’s west coast.
Meaning ‘Battleship Island’ in English, Gunkanjima’s real name
is Hashima and it is one of 505 uninhabited islands in the
Nagasaki Prefecture, about 15 kilometres from Nagasaki itself.
It earned its nickname due to its resemblance to a military
warship. Despite being off-limits to travellers, the island has
become an irresistible magnet for urban explorers who go to
extraordinary lengths to investigate and photograph the island’s
abandoned buildings. Gunkanjima was once just a small reef but,
following the discovery of coal in 1810, was turned into mining
facility during the industrialisation of Japan. It gave rise to
its own population o