TOPIC:

Third photograph, omitted from earlier post

EFV, great photos.
All taken on 25 January, despite the dates - fighting continued till after dark on 24th and 26th was rain all day.
The photo of the dead in the trench has been enhanced by van Hoepen b putting in a collage of the Tugela valley.
This shows the shot in its original form. The trench is an outlying one facing Aloe Knoll

Van Hoepen photographed at least 3 of his propaganda photos twice. Here's a slightly different angle of the same scene

This pair shows van Hoepen himself with the outlying trench beyond. The photo either taken by Lund bros or by Hoepen's second camera.
It is of interest that no trace of the outlying trench can be seen today. This was the trench where the Lancashire Fusiliers surrendered, and it has been air-brushed off the battlefield.

Rob,

To add to the confusion regarding who took which photographs, the copies I have of the two images reproduced below each have erased copyright details for "LUND BROS / KROONSTAD / O.V.S." (i.e. not van Hoepen).













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The biggest mystery on Spioenkop summit is the nature of the long communal grave running roughly north-west, and quite separate from the known British trench. It is 80m long and has only two crosses on it, one towards each end. I've heard people say it was a Boer trench used as a mass grave - there are many reasons why this is not the explanation. My opinion is that the "grave" is an erroneous structure built up along a pathway between small graves. Possibly it was built up when the Ladysmith Public Works Dept decided to raise the level of earth and stones in the British trench grave, which was done to protect the remains within it which were becoming exposed.
I attach photos of what I refer to - in all these, it is in an orange circle; the British trench grave is in a green circle. I attach an early view of what I think is this structure, and its appearance today.
I would welcome any information about it, and especially welcome any historical photos of this area.
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