This photograph documents the ruins of a large barracks-style building destroyed by fire and bombardment during World War II, set against a backdrop of steep alpine mountains. Such devastation was common in southern Germany and Austria in the final weeks of the war, as Allied forces, including the 101st Airborne Division, advanced into the region around Berchtesgaden, encountering the wreckage of military and administrative facilities left in the wake of retreating German forces. Project: 218245