It's a sure sign of Halloween fading away for the year when Jack-o-Lanterns give up the ghost, so to speak, and slump into their rotting softness. Whole pumpkins may last the entire winter, but once you carve them, the clock starts ticking. Jack-o-Lanterns past their prime have a certain melancholy beauty in their sad slump. It's time to put those pumpkins out of their misery and into a compost heap.
A few years ago, Atlas Obscura asked their readers to send in photographs of their past-their-prime pumpkins, which are sometimes referred to as "slumpkins" or "dumpkins." If you're ready to bid a final farewell to Halloween 2023, you'll enjoy seeing a gallery of 32 very elderly Jack-o-Lanterns. Then we can start planning for Halloween 2024! -via Boing Boing
(Image credit: michael)