Facing the scars of war - Egypt

Photograph shows Indo-Chinese labor groups reclaiming French land from trench warfare by filling in a line of trenches. They work near remaining "chevaux-de-frise".
Caption label from exhibit "World War I ...": American Red Cross Witnesses Recorvery Efforts. The American Red Cross documented the Chinese Labour Corps who were among the approximately 450,000 workers recruited from the Republic of China, Indo-China, Egypt, India, and other developing nations in 1917. The British and French armies sought manpower to dig trenches, fill sandbags, maintain roads, and repair tanks. After the war, some stayed to fill in the trenches, remove unexploded bombs and mines, help in the removal of the dead, and other thankless tasks. By 1921, most workers were repatriated to their countries.

Inscribed on lower left corner of photo: RC4712.
Printed at top of mount: American Red Cross Washington, D.C.
Includes lengthy typed caption on verso.
Typed on verso: No. RC-4712.
Photo provided by the "Paris Office."
Exhibited: "World War I : American Artists View the Great War" in the Graphic Arts Gallery, Thomas Jefferson Building, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., October 2016 - May 2017.
(American Red Cross), c3, d2, France - Cemeteries & graves or General - Reconstruction