[Interior of Fort Stedman, in Front of Petersburg, Virginia] 1865

Timothy O’Sullivan made this albumen silver print, of the Interior of Fort Stedman, near Petersburg, Virginia, during the American Civil War. You see a scene defined by the physical labor of war. It is a landscape of hewn timbers, piled earth, and hastily erected fortifications, all captured through the lens of O'Sullivan's camera. The dirt and the trees are the raw materials from which the soldiers built their defenses. The photograph itself is a study in materiality, with the stark contrast of light and shadow emphasizing the textures of the rough-hewn wood and the solidity of the earthen walls. This image transcends mere documentation, it speaks to the human cost of conflict, highlighting the sheer physical effort required to wage war, reducing men to makers. It prompts us to consider the social and political forces that drove men to transform their environment into instruments of destruction, and the environmental cost of war.