Where are other wizards that made horcruxes in the past

We know that you-know-who was probably the first that attempted to make more than one horcrux. But the existing literature on the subject and history show us that there have been at least a few (and in the long history of magic probably many) wizards that have created horcruxes. So, where are they?

My understanding is the following: the horcrux tethers a piece of a soul to the earth, so it cannot move on. But that doesn't protect the main body from being killed or dying of old age. What happened to you-know-who after his attach on harry was basically just a rebound killing curse. If he were killed by another wizard with the same spell (or with a rock over the head, for that matter), the results would have been the same: his main body would die, but his spirit would linger in the insubstantial form he was in for 10 years until he posessed Quirrel. The same probably goes for dying from natural causes: if you waited for you-know-who to age over 150 years, his body would probably, even with all the magical resilience and potions and spells, fail of old age, as the horcrux does nothing to preserve the main body, only tethers the soul (Hermione said that in horcrux, the soul dies when the object is destroyed, being the opposite of a living being, where the body is fragile, but the soul survives).

So... a wizard that makes a horcrux must have a plan what to do when he eventually dies. It will happen, either from aging, or from a fatal curse. By creating a horcrux, he does have "backup", but it needs to be restored. Even voldy who had many followers, almost gave up on being restored. He needs help to create a new body, and he is frail in that condition, he needs an able dark wizard he can trust. That's if the wizard who made the horcrux is even aware of any spells that create a new body for himself.

The fact is, there are no dark wizards of great age, unless they ceased their dark activities and live under false identities. Therefore, I must assume they all died of old age or were murdered. However, if nobody knew they made a horcrux, and because horcruxes are notoriously hard to destroy even if you know what they are, I must assume there are many unidentified horcruxes in the world, maybe hundreds of years old! And because of that, there must be just as many spirits of old dark wizards haunting around endlessly, barely hanging on to a formless and pointless existence. It seems to me the best approximation of hell there is - and they can do nothing about it. Death would be a far better choice.

Questions for discussion:

• Is there actually a robust plan how to get back from the incorporeal state? Or they all plan to just "wing it" when it comes to that?


• Have all attempts to survive death by creating a horcrux failed, or did any dark wizard before you-know-who actually get a body back (at least for a few years until they died again?)


• Would stale and forgotten horcruxes, if found, be recognized for what they are, or would they just be labeled as "random dark objects with mysterious properties"?


• Does the loose piece of soul, if given enough time without a body, dissolve or become inert and forget their self and purpose, just wandering without cause as a malevolent presence?