Paradise lost and found: Fascinating pictures inside the crumbling manor house that was once home to epic poet John Milton
These haunting images show the crumbling remains of the country retreat once home to iconic writer and poet, John Milton.
What was once an elegant mansion is now certainly a state of Paradise Lost, as Berkyn Manor lies decayed, damp and dirty, 28 years after it was abandoned by its last owners, the Daily Mail reports.
In its prime, the vast property - now barely standing - housed some of the country's wealthiest families in its 450 years as a family home.
However, its most famous resident was John Milton, the London-born poet whose most celebrated work,
Paradise Lost, cemented his reputation as one of the greatest English poets of all time.
He lived in the house with his family between 1632 to 1638 - when he was in his 20s.
For the next two centuries, the mansion - in Horton, Slough - changed hands between several well off owners, before being purchased in 1848 by wealthy Edward Tyrell, who rebuilt Berkyn Manor into the home it remains today.
Its most recent owners were the Raynor family, who bought it at the end of the Second World War in April 1945.
But the structure has been left empty since 1987, when Ernest Raynor died aged 96.
Without care, it has succumbed to damage beyond repair by nearly three decades of neglect, falling victim to time.
The manor is now extremely hazardous, with parts of its roof and flooring caved in and the third floor only accessible by a ladder.
However, these photographs show not only how the building has been lost to time, but how its final tenants' once comfortable lifestyle has been frozen in time by its abandonment.
The anonymous urban explorer behind the images snapped old furniture, rotting bookshelves, clothes, a television, newspapers, letters and family photographs in his daring venture inside.
There is also the crooked keys of an old piano, rotting wooden window frames and unfinished cups of tea.
Around 100 years ago the home was given the nickname Bull Manor, in honour of the guardian Highland Bull that waited outside for passers-by.
He may be gone - as too the building's interior grandeur - but, as these snaps show, the property certainly still retains its mesmerising character.
The man behind the photos said: 'We made our way into the windowless basement, and pulling the box of candles out of my bag, we soon had the room well lit and heated,' said the urban explorer.
'We lay down our cardboard box sleeping mats, get into our sleeping bags and tried to get some sleep.
'Five hours later we were up with the sun and ready to see what this place had in store for us, we were not disappointed.'
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