The Snapshots in Time Collection

Entrance to a Fortified Dugout or Cave Position, Ie Shima/Okinawa Campaign, 1945

Entrance to a Fortified Dugout or Cave Position, Ie Shima/Okinawa Campaign, 1945

A small, camouflaged dugout entrance reinforced with stacked coral stone, likely a Japanese defensive fighting position encountered during the Okinawa/Ie Shima campaign of 1945. Improvised shelters like this, dug into rocky terrain and screened with brush, were a hallmark of Japanese defensive tactics in the final battles of the Pacific War. Project: 218232