Kieron Connolly’s new book of photographs of more than 100 once-busy and often elegant buildings gives an idea of how the world might look if humankind disappeared. Here: Bodie, Mono County, California. Gold was discovered at Bodie in 1859 (just after the initial California gold rush) and it went from mining camp to boomtown. Its decline began in 1880, when word spread of new boomtowns elsewhere. The Standard Consolidated Mine closed in 1913, and four years later the Bodie Railway was abandoned. By 1940 the population was down to 40. Today, Bodie is maintained in a state of arrested decay as a visitor attraction. (Photo by Alamy Stock Photo)

It is said that Torajans are people who “live to die”. For this Indonesian ethnic group, funerals are such extravagant events that they sometimes attract tourists. Families can postpone burials years (and the deceased are considered sick and hosted at home until the funeral) until the family can raise enough money and gather as many relatives as possible. And then it’s a jubilant multiday social event with a parade, dances and animal sacrifices. Agung Parameswara photographed these funerary practices when he traveled to South Sulawesi province, where the Torajans live. (Photo by Agung Parameswara/The Washington Post)

Aerial view of the “Viracocha III”, a boat made only from the totora reed, as it is being prepared to cross the Pacific from Chile to Australia on an expected six-month journey, La Paz, Bolivia, October 19, 2016. An expedition in a boat made only of reeds crafted by indigenous Bolivians is getting ready to cross the Pacific from South America to Australia, in a fresh attempt to prove that ancient mariners were capable of making the journey. (Photo by David Mercado/Reuters)

Participants wearing historical attire compete on historical high wheel Penny Farthing bicycles in the traditional 'One Mile Race' at Letna Park in Prague, Czech Republic, November 7, 2015. The meeting of Penny Farthing bicycles is taking place for the 22th time. (Photo by Filip Singer/EPA)

Peruvian shamans holding a poster of Russia's President Vladimir Putin perform a ritual of predictions for the new year at Morro Solar hill in Chorrillos, Lima, Peru, December 29, 2015. The ritual is an end-of-the-year tradition and the shamans called for world peace and wished good luck for the upcoming elections in Peru and the U.S. (Photo by Mariana Bazo/Reuters)

Indonesian army soldier Partika Subagyo, wearing a costume of the puppet character Bima, dances to raise money for landslide victims, in Solo, December 17, 2014, in this photo taken by Antara Foto. The landslide in Banjarnegara destroyed a village and killed at least 32 people, according to officials. (Photo by Andika Betha/Reuters/Antara Foto)

A dancer waits to perform during festivities marking the start of the annual harvest festival of “Onam” in Kochi, India, August 19, 2015. The ten-day-long Hindu festival is celebrated annually in India's southern coastal state of Kerala to commemorate the return of King Mahabali to his beloved subjects. (Photo by Sivaram V/Reuters)

“The Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon, center, exits the water during the Chicago Polar Plunge, Sunday, March 2, 2014, in Chicago. Fallon joined Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel in the event. (Photo by Andrew A. Nelles/AP Photo)