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Have you ever seen a place that's a bit eerie, unsettling, or even downright creepy? Maybe it's due to the lighting, the objects that are around you, or just an overall unnerving vibe? Perhaps you've actually been to a similar place? A place that seems like a portal between this world and somewhere else.

If you have, then you've probably been to a liminal space. On the Internet, that usually refers to empty rooms, corridors, and even streets that look surreal for some reason. Here we have a compilation of some intriguing liminal spaces, so, if you're looking for some weirdness, scroll away.

To know more about what liminality actually is, Bored Panda reached out to Lecturer in English at the University of Hull Dr. Kevin Corstorphine. He gave us some examples of liminal spaces from classical Gothic texts and explained why the concept is so important to the genre. Read his expert insights below!

#1

Lovely Winter's Day In Amsterdam

Lovely Winter's Day In Amsterdam

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Dr. Kevin Corstorphine, Lecturer in English at the University of Hull, tells us that the term 'liminality' comes from anthropology. Anthropologists used it to describe a period of life, adolescence, for instance, "which is between social roles but also where in many cultures people are separated from society in a ritual way."

"This sense of being 'in-between' has become a useful way of thinking about the way that Gothic literature often focuses on areas that are often taken for granted: the boundary between life and [beyond] being an obvious one, with supernatural entities existing somewhere between these two states."

On the Internet, of course, the term means something different. "In modern aesthetic terms, it has taken on the meaning of the eerie feeling that you can get in a space that is neither here nor there, like an empty train station or an abandoned playground," Dr. Corstorphine says.

#3

Found A Portal To Elsewhere

Found A Portal To Elsewhere

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Dr. Corstorphine points to Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897) as one of the classical examples of the use of liminal spaces in Gothic fiction. "[It's] full of liminal spaces that dictate the story," he says. "Van Helsing says that 'He may not enter anywhere at the first, unless there be some one of the household who bid him to come', so in other words, he has to be willingly invited across the threshold."

"It is also a novel that shows an obsession with the boundaries between life and [beyond], the integrity of the human body, animal and human, the past and the present, and the liminal spaces between all of these dichotomies. Dracula is threatening because he exists in this space," the Lecturer in English explains. "The way that the novel is told through letters and newspaper reports even puts his existence for the reader in a liminal space."

#5

My Husband Sent Me This. It Was Taken On His Way To Work This Morning

My Husband Sent Me This. It Was Taken On His Way To Work This Morning

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#6

My Mother-In-Lawā€™s House Flooded Last Night. Took This Pic Before We Started Pumping Water Out, Thought It Looked Surreal

My Mother-In-Lawā€™s House Flooded Last Night. Took This Pic Before We Started Pumping Water Out, Thought It Looked Surreal

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According to Dr. Kevin Corstorphine, liminality was an important concept in Gothic fiction from the very start. "The Gothic tradition begins with a fascination with architecture and physical spaces: way back in The Castle of Otranto (1764) Horace Walpole gives us a story about a young woman trapped in underground passages and a ghostly figure returning to smash his giant fist through the castle walls."

"The Gothic attempts to disturb the reader by blurring categories and asking questions about the boundaries that make us feel secure," the lecturer explains. "H.P. Lovecraft, in Supernatural Horror in Literature (1927), writes of cosmic horror as the feeling of listening to 'the scratching of outside shapes and entities on the known universe's utmost rim.' The Gothic thrives in those gaps between our understanding, for example between religion and science."

#8

I Am Currently Working Construction At A New Amazon Fulfillment Center (650,000 Square Feet). This Is The Fourth Of Five Floor. That Is Fog In The Background

I Am Currently Working Construction At A New Amazon Fulfillment Center (650,000 Square Feet). This Is The Fourth Of Five Floor. That Is Fog In The Background

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Val
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1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Amazon is a terrible company to work for. They treat their employees like dirt.

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On the Internet, however, liminal spaces are surreal, eerie, and unsettling. In most cases, they're abandoned or empty (of people) spaces: offices, streets, corridors, hotel hallways, etc. Liminal spaces gained a lot of popularity in 2019 when a post on 4chan about The Backrooms, a particular liminal space, went viral.

#10

I Think This Belongs Here

I Think This Belongs Here

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#11

Unsure If These Fit Here But It Was Quite A Walk Last Night

Unsure If These Fit Here But It Was Quite A Walk Last Night

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The Internet is very fond of liminal spaces. Twitter page @SpaceLiminalBot has 1.2M followers. The Instagram account @liminalmoods boasts 463k followers. The Reddit community r/LiminalSpaces has almost 800k members. They pride themselves on The Matrix-like aesthetics, with descriptions like "Trip on the verge of reality" and "You've been here before. Wake up."

#13

This Empty Beach Me And My Girlfriend Saw While Taking A Walk Last Night

This Empty Beach Me And My Girlfriend Saw While Taking A Walk Last Night

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#14

The Building Next To The Hotel I'm Staying At

The Building Next To The Hotel I'm Staying At

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#15

Itā€™s Been 38 Hours And Itā€™s Still Dark Out. Everyone Else On The Cruise Seemingly Vanished

Itā€™s Been 38 Hours And Itā€™s Still Dark Out. Everyone Else On The Cruise Seemingly Vanished

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The surrealism of a liminal space comes from its familiarity. Just like with the concept of the uncanny valley, liminal spaces creep us out and attract us so much at the same time because it's a mix of the known and the unknown. Some point to Giorgio de Chirico's "The Tower" as an example of liminal space in art, yet others say the place for that to work should be more recognizable.

#16

The Creepiest Gas Station On Earth

The Creepiest Gas Station On Earth

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To those living in current times, the aesthetic and concept of liminal spaces seem especially attractive because of the current state of uncertainty our world and society give us. As Jake Pitre writes for The Atlantic, "The pace of modern life seems impossible to keep up with, yet our lived reality does not change. So as society waits for the breaking point to come, liminal spaces make the anticipation of those fears visible, and reaffirm that other people are looking at the world the same way."

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#19

New Fear Unlocked: Indoor Pools With Dim Lighting

New Fear Unlocked: Indoor Pools With Dim Lighting

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#20

Abandoned Hospital, No Power, No One Inside For Decades. A Light Always On In One Window

Abandoned Hospital, No Power, No One Inside For Decades. A Light Always On In One Window

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#21

Imagine Being The First And Only Person To Show Up Early To Work, Walking Down A Dark Hallway, And As You Walk Past The Break Room You See This From The Corner Of Your Eye

Imagine Being The First And Only Person To Show Up Early To Work, Walking Down A Dark Hallway, And As You Walk Past The Break Room You See This From The Corner Of Your Eye

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You might notice that we're struggling with getting to a proper definition for 'liminal spaces' here. That's because it's hard to pin down what they mean exactly. That's why it might be helpful to note what they're not. According to the r/LiminalSpace subreddit, they're not just creepy, surreal, or simply nostalgic. 

#22

Iron Mine In Virginia That Was Abandoned In The Early 1900s

Iron Mine In Virginia That Was Abandoned In The Early 1900s

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#23

Standing Under The Avala TV Tower, Mountain Avala, Serbia

Standing Under The Avala TV Tower, Mountain Avala, Serbia

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#24

This Does Not Look Real

This Does Not Look Real

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To people who prefer to learn by looking at visuals, The Shining can be a good example of what the Internet means when they talk about liminal spaces. The abandoned and decaying Overlook Hotel with its many hallways evokes a forlorn and uneasy feeling. As the camera follows little Danny riding his tricycle, the fear of the unknown grows even stronger.

#25

This Was My Neighborhood Today

This Was My Neighborhood Today

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#26

Birthday Room In My Local Movie Theater

Birthday Room In My Local Movie Theater

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The urban legend of The Backrooms is also what inspired the TV series Severance. The show's creator took the idea of a place composed of infinite office spaces and hallways and explored what would happen if we actually put people there; what would happen if we transitioned from our reality to some other?

#28

Time To Take Your Exam, Pick A Seat

Time To Take Your Exam, Pick A Seat

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#29

Escalators To Darkness

Escalators To Darkness

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#30

The View I Had From The Bus Stop At 5 AM This Morning

The View I Had From The Bus Stop At 5 AM This Morning

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But, to me personally, the most interesting representation of a liminal space would be The Black Lodge in Twin Peaks (although a lot of folks on the r/LiminalSpace subreddit would disagree with that). You can't deny how stylish and cool David Lynch's version of an in-between place looks—a waiting room between this life and the next, between reality and the dreamworld.

#31

Something Feels Off

Something Feels Off

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#35

Took This In A Gym, Close To Where I Work

Took This In A Gym, Close To Where I Work

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#37

Was Exploring The Massive Old Hilton In Chicago, And Came Across This Room In The Basement

Was Exploring The Massive Old Hilton In Chicago, And Came Across This Room In The Basement

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#39

Stairs In An Abandoned Orphanage, Italy

Stairs In An Abandoned Orphanage, Italy

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#40

The Toilet At My Work

The Toilet At My Work

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#42

Lobby Of An Abandoned Paul Rudolph Masterpiece

Lobby Of An Abandoned Paul Rudolph Masterpiece

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#44

I Got Lost In This Weird Concrete Area. No One Was Around And The Doors Were Locked

I Got Lost In This Weird Concrete Area. No One Was Around And The Doors Were Locked

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#45

Empty Mall (Yes, Believe It Or Not This Really Is A Mall)

Empty Mall (Yes, Believe It Or Not This Really Is A Mall)

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#46

I Took This Picture And Left As Quick As Possible This Room

I Took This Picture And Left As Quick As Possible This Room

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#47

This Pool At A Hotel Iā€™m Staying At - It Was Quiet

This Pool At A Hotel Iā€™m Staying At - It Was Quiet

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#48

My Father's Office At Night

My Father's Office At Night

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Oops
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1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hey, i was working as a student sometimes in the anatomy section of the university, corpses laying next door in the morgue.It was an old building, crackling and rattling sometimes, i never was fearful, but when there was a sound at the entrance, i was alarmed. The living!

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#49

I Just Wanted To Buy Chocolate

I Just Wanted To Buy Chocolate

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Savahax
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1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

CĢ·ĢĢ ĢŸĢŖĢ—Ģ™ĢÆĢ—Ģ¦ĶˆĢ­ĢĶ™Ģ¹Ģ²HĢµĢ†Ģ‹Ģ…Ģ€Ģ”Ģ€Ķ†Ķ„Ķ€Ģ”Ķ„Ģ‚Ķ›Ķ‘Ķ—ĶĢƒĢ‘Ķ„ĶĢ…Ģ†Ķ‘Ģ™ĢĢ Ģ„ĶˆOĢ·Ķ˜Ģ”ĶŠĢ‰Ģ†ĶĢ›Ģ‘ĢŽĶĢ’ĢˆĶ—Ģ½Ģ€ĶŠĶ›ĶŒĢˆĶ ĢØĢ–Ģ§Ģ²Ķ“ĶšĢ»Ģ–Ģ”Ķ™ĢŸĢ§Ģ¤Ģ™ĢŖĢ–Ģ—Ģ—Ģ»Ģ—Ģ¤Ģ—Ģ Ģ ĢĢ«Ģ§ĶœĢœĢÆĢ­ĢÆCĢøĢšĶ‘ĶĢ“Ģ„ĢŠĶĢ“Ģ€ĢŠĢŽĢ˜Ģ”Ģ¢Ķ™ĢĶˆĢ®Ģ©Ģ®Ģ¤Ģ£Ķ–Ģ¹ĢžĶšĶ…Ģ–Ģ©Ģ°Ģ¬Ģ®ĢÆĢ³Ģ»Ģ”Ķ“ĶĶ“OĢµĢŽĶ„Ģ’ĶĢŽĢ“Ģ€Ģ€ĢæĢ›Ģ‚Ģ•Ģ¢Ķ‰ĢŗĢ¢Ķ“ĢØĢŖĶ…Ķ…Ķ…Ķ•ĶœĢ¼ĶˆĢ²ĶˆĢ”LĢ¶Ģ•Ķ’ĢˆĢ¾ĶĢ‚ĢĢšĶŒĶ†ĶĶ‚Ķ‘Ķ›ĢĢ½Ģ½Ģ›Ķ„Ķ‹ĢˆĢ–ĶˆĢ³Ģ»Ģ„Ģ¦Ķ‰Ģ£AĢ“ĶĶƒĢ½Ģ£ĢØĢ©Ģ¼Ģ Ķ”ĶšĶ‰Ģ ĶœĢØĢ²ĢžĶ“Ķ–Ģ§Ģ¼Ģ”Ģ±Ģ£Ķ–Ģ®ĢØĢ»TĢµĢĢ‚Ģ”ĶƒĢ‹Ģ‰Ķ„ĢĢ„Ķ›ĢšĶ’Ģ…Ģ“ĶĶ’ĢŠĢ‘ĢšĢ‚Ģ”Ģ„Ģ›ĶĢšĢŽĶ Ģ³Ģ³Ķ“ĢŗĢ–Ķ‡Ģ±Ģ²Ķ™Ģ—Ģ¢Ģ–Ģ¦Ķ–ĢžĢŖĢ°ĢŖĶ…Ģ¹ĢŸĢŗĶˆĶ“Ģ™Ģ³Ķ…ĶšEĢ“Ģ…ĶŠĢæĢĢƒĢ‘Ķ‚ĢĢ…Ģ‹Ģ½Ķ„Ģ†Ķ†ĢŠĶ’Ķ„ĶĶĶĢŒĶƒĢĢĢ†Ķ—Ģ¾Ģ§Ģ ĢĢ©Ķ‰Ķ“Ģ¢Ķ“Ģ¢Ģ¢ĢžĢÆĢ¢Ģ§Ģ¢Ģ¢Ģ©Ģ„ĢžĢ³?Ģ“Ģ‹ĢŖĢ¦Ģ°Ģ°ĶœĢ°ĢžĢ¦Ģ¦Ģ°ĢØĶ‰ĢŸĶ•Ģ¼Ģ£ĶĢ Ķ•Ģ¦Ķ™Ģ©Ģ˜ĶŽĢ˜Ģ¢Ķ™Ģ™ĢŗĢ˜Ģ£Ģ”Ķ™Ķ™

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#50

Accommodation At My School

Accommodation At My School

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Rich Black
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1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I live in the blue room. It's right over the green room. You cant miss it.

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Note: this post originally had 100 images. Itā€™s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.

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