More than 15,000 Union prisoners of war are buried here, many of them dying of malnutrition and disease at the notorious Andersonville Confederate Prison Camp within a space of only 14 months during 1864 and 1865. This massive toll is grimly expressed here by the rows of grave markers spaced only inches apart. So many died so quickly that burial space was sharply limited. I place these strangely compacted rows of graves in the foreground of this image, and incongruously contrast them to the normal spacing of later burials placed in soft focus, and moving in a different direction, within the background. I organized this image in layers, beginning with the sharply focused grave markers in the foreground, and gradually fading them into softer focus as they recede. A lone tree separates the rows of older markers from the newer burials behind them. In the distant background, a red wall encloses the acres of stones, separating them from a stand of trees. This is a scene of death juxtaposed with life, a poignant reminder of the savage war that tore the United States apart 150 years ago.