When you think of forests you probably think of old oak trees, green leaves, and mischievous squirrels playing ukuleles with Robin Hood’s Band of Merry Men (or something like that). These remarkable photos of Deadvlei in Namibia, however, might be about to make you feel very differently about forestry.

Situated between some of the highest sand dunes on Earth, nothing new has grown in these parts for approximately 900-years. The trees, which died a long time ago, have been blackened by the intense power of the sun. The process of decomposition is impossible due to the extreme dryness of the environment, and so the ancient trees remain strangely preserved.