Spoils and plunders


 Posted on January 14th, 2011
 by Patrick 3 great comments. Room for one more!

I’ve finally managed to find a place for some of my treasures.

urban exploration, antiques, toronto, city, life

These fond memories were all salvaged from abandoned, dilapidated, crumbling buildings that I explored during my UrbEx days.

UrbEx (or Urban Exploration), traces a large proportion of its origins to Infiltration.org, based in Toronto, and later UER.ca (UrbEx Resources), possibly also Toronto-based. As enthusiasts are quick to point out, people have been exploring (including structures, abandoned or otherwise), since exploration has existed. The only real difference with UrbEx is the fact that a label and a hardhat have been slapped on it.

In 99% of the cases, UrbExers are breaking the law by trespassing, so that’s part of the fun right there.  Then there are the dangerous conditions of some of the buildings, that’s a plus. Also, some locations are remote enough that if you get stuck, you might be seriously fucked.

numismatics, coins, collecting, toronto, city, life

And then, sometimes, you hit on a cache of salvageables, items that need to be saved. I had no qualms about snatching any of these things before someone set fire to the place, or it was flooded, or collapsed, or was collapsed, etc. etc. In fact, after seeing what happened to some of the places I’d visited, I wish I’d been able to give more things a home.

I took photos too but I don’t know what happened to them. I suspect they’re burned onto some CD sitting around my flat but that doesn’t narrow down the culprits. Hopefully I’ll find them one day, and find them worth sharing.

3 Comments on “ Spoils and plunders ”

  • YummY!
    January 15th, 2011 9:27 am

    I've been in a couple of abandoned places, but never found any treasures.


  • Patrick
    January 16th, 2011 6:09 am

    I've found more things in rural areas, YummY. In the city, it's mostly about sightseeing. :)


  • Desertboots
    January 16th, 2011 9:19 am

    I love hunting for treasure as well. Items lost or left behind tell such beautiful stories and can also be inspirations to draw on in one's imagination. All that'd be missing is a pen + a pad…

    ;)


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