French graves smashed by German shell fire; a German sniper was discovered hidden in a coffin 1914 - 1918

This stereoscopic image, produced by Realistic Travels, captures the desecration of French graves by German shell fire. Dominating the scene are the shattered crosses, potent symbols of faith, hope, and remembrance, now reduced to rubble amidst the chaos of war. Observe how the cross, originally a symbol of redemption and resurrection, is here violently disrupted. This recalls similar desecrations throughout history—the iconoclasm of religious images during the Byzantine era, or the deliberate destruction of sacred sites in more recent conflicts. The sniper's hiding place, a coffin, introduces a disturbing inversion: a vessel of eternal rest transformed into an instrument of death. This macabre motif echoes ancient funerary rites where the dead were believed to possess power over the living. Here, the past and the present collide in a ghastly tableau, revealing how deeply ingrained symbols can be twisted and perverted, carrying subconscious associations of fear, death, and the fragility of civilization.