I received this intriguing photo today from Dean Cahill who said be believes it to have been taken in Switzerland, “during the time between the escape and the repatriation. My grandfather, Pat, is seated second from right in the picture. Maybe someone will be able to shed light on his fellow swimmers.”

Click on the image above to see a full-sized scan of the photograph.

Inscribed in the lower right corner are the words “Photo Brandt AROSA.”

Arosa is a municipality in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. As a resort, Arosa is popular in both winter and summer.

The photographer is evidently British photographer Bill Brandt. Vintage photographs that he took of horse races in Arosa during 1946—“Race Journalist” and “Snowy Spectators” are available though Getty images.

Pat Cahill and two other British soldiers who escaped from Camp 59 made their way to Switzerland, where they lived for six months until their repatriation.

Read more about Patrick Cahill in the May 16, 2010 post “Patrick Cahill—Capture and Liberation.”