The New York Times of May 24, 2020 paid tribute to the lives lost during the coronavirus pandemic.

As the US fatality count nears 100,000, the newspaper printed nearly 1000 names - or just 1 per cent of the fatalities.

The headline read, "U.S. Deaths Near 100,000, an Incalculable Loss," followed by the subheading: "They were not simply names on a list. They were us."

The list, which continued inside the paper, was intended to leave an indelible mark after months of COVID-19 reporting.

Simone Landon, assistant editor of the Graphics desk, has explained it this way: "We knew we were approaching this milestone. We knew that there should be some way to try to reckon with that number."

She came up with the idea of compiling obituaries and death notices of Covid-19 victims from newspapers large and small across the country, and culling vivid passages from them.

It wasn't a one-woman show as a raft of people helped bring the vision to reality. You can read more on how it evolved behind-the-scenes here.

To check out the digitalised version of the project, check out this interactive.