THESE are the chilling photos of Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria where Nazi guards forced prisoners to haul heavy blocks of stone up the Stairs of Death.

Loaded with around 50kg on their back, the exhausted prisoners would often collapse during their ascent of the 186 steps.

22 Prisoners of the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria would have to carry heavy rocks up the "Stairs of Death," pictured then (left) and now (right) Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 Loaded up with around 50kg on their back, the exhausted prisoners would often collapse during their ascent of the 186 steps Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 People died on the punishing Mauthausen Stairs of Death on a daily basis Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 Prisoners at the Austrian camp making a salute at roll call Credit: Exclusivepix Media

Any stumbles would result in a horrific dominoes effect, causing limbs and bodies to be crushed.

Sometimes, the SS guards would force the exhausted prisoners to race up the stairs carrying blocks of stone.

People died on the Mauthausen Stairs of Death on a daily basis, and those who survived were placed in a terrifying line-up at the edge of a cliff called The Parachutists Wall.

Prison guards would point a gun at each inmate, who would have the option of being shot or pushing the prisoner in front off the cliff.

Suicides were frequent with many prisoners seeing this as a way out.

22 The site's location, 12 miles east of the city of Linz, was chosen thanks to the nearby granite quarry, where many inmates laboured Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 The site is now nearly all covered by shrubs and overgrowth, although visitors can explore a museum which is open to the public Credit: Exclusivepix Media

Mauthausen was classified as a Grade III camp, which was reserved for “incorrigible political enemies of the Reich” to be exterminated or killed through the exhaustion of the gruelling labour.

It had such a horrific reputation that the SS called the camp Mauthausen Knochenmühle, or “the bone grinder.”

The brutal camp was one of the largest labour sites in the German-controlled part of Europe.

In total, over 122,000 people died at the camp through causes such as exhaustion, illness, being shot or suicide.

22 Many who survived the punishing work load felt there was no hope, with some prisoners committing suicide Credit: Exclusivepix Media

The camp's location was chosen thanks to the nearby granite quarry and close proximity to Linz, a city Hitler planned to rebuild with grandiose buildings as envisioned by Albert Speer.

Today, the "Stairs of Death" form part of the guided tours at the Mauthausen Memorial.

The stairs have been redone and straightened so that tourists can easily climb up and down them, but at that time they were tilted and slippery.

Related Articles 'WORK WILL SET YOU FREE' Iconic 'arbeit macht frei' gate stolen from Dachau found two years after thieves pinched it VATICAN SPY PLOT Never-seen-before Nazi war crime files tell story of Pope Pius XII's Vatican spy and the plot to kill Hitler DOES THIS PENDANT HOLD LINK TO ANNE? Pendant identical to one owned by Anne Frank found at Nazi death camp THE ANGEL OF DEATH Nazi doctor Josef Mengele's skeleton is now a teaching aid for medical students EXPLOSIVES ARRESTS German cops probe two men 'linked to neo-Nazi group' arrested after explosives found

22 Heinrich Himmler, a leading member of the Nazi Party, seen in the quarry Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 These images show the mugshots of children who were held as prisoners at the brutal camp Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 This haunting image shows one of the inmates who has been beaten and is suffering swelling to the face Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 Concentration camp prisoners pull down Swastika and eagle after liberation Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 These were some of the prisoner tags found in one of the camp's mass graves Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 The Mauthausen crematorium cold store Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 Prisoners doing forced labour in the Wiener Graben quarry at the Mauthausen concentration camp Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 The camp tragically had lots of prisoner deaths thanks to the gruelling work load. Pictured is the crematorium Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 The interior of one of the barracks at the camp, which housed rows of bunk beds Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 Sometimes the SS guards would force the exhausted prisoners to race up the stairs carrying the heavy blocks of stone from the quarry Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 The chilling crematorium autopsy room at the camp Credit: Exclusivepix Media

Christian Bernadac, a French resistance fighter who was imprisoned at Mauthausen, wrote a book called The 186 Steps about his experiences at the concentration camp.

He wrote: "Those who visit the Mauthausen quarry today, don't see the same thing, for since then, the steps have been redone - a real stairway, cemented, and regular.

“At that time, they were simply cut with a pick into the clay and rock, held in place by logs, unequal in height and tread, and therefore extremely difficult, not only for climbing but also for the descent.

“Stones rolled under our wooden-soled sandals, and we were forced to keep moving at a very rapid pace.

“The work consisted of carrying up a stone of considerable size and weight, along the 186 steps, after which there was still a considerable distance to cover.

“The man who chose a stone found to be too small was out of luck. And all of this went on at the rate of eight to ten trips per day. The pace was infernal, without a second's rest."

22 A sign created in tribute to those who lost their lives at the camp Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 Following a typhus outbreak, prisoners were stripped and deloused in a courtyard in June 1941 Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 A room showing names of the prisoners who spent time at the camp Credit: Exclusivepix Media

22 The stairs of death as they look today. The camp now has a visitor centre for those wishing to know more about its history Credit: Exclusivepix Media

The Mauthausen quarry is now overgrown with trees and bushes but there is now a museum and a visitor centre.

We previously shared images of a pendant identical to one owned by Anne Frank found at Nazi death camp Sobibor.

We also covered the news that Nazi war criminal Alois Brunner, who invented ‘gas vans’ to massacre Jews, died after years of squalor and misery in Syrian basement.