The story of the Prometheus tree begins (or rather ends) in the summer of 1964. That summer, graduate student Donald R. Currey was researching the glaciology of ice ages on Wheeler Peak, the highest mountain in the Snake Range, within the Great Basin National Park (United States). There grow the bristlecone pines (Pinus longaeva), famous for surviving thousands of years in extreme climates.
Currey had authorization from the U.S. Forest Service to take samples from these trees and study their growth rings, valuable for understanding processes like climate change. However, his research ended with an unexpected outcome: the felling of Prometheus, the oldest known tree at that time, whose true age was unknown until then.
The felling of Prometheus
The exact reason for the felling was never entirely clear. Some versions suggest that the sampling instrument got stuck, others that it was too small, or that Currey thought he needed a complete cross-section to examine the rings. The fact is, he had official permission, and no one imagined the longevity of the specimen.
After cutting a 10-centimeter slab, Currey spent a week in his motel counting the rings with a magnifying glass and sandpaper. The result was surprising: 4,862 rings, which placed the tree’s age at about 4,900 years. Prometheus became the oldest recorded living being, but it was already too late: it had been destroyed.
A discreet but resilient tree
Unlike the imposing sequoias of California, bristlecone pines are small in size and grow slowly. This discretion allows them to survive in harsh conditions like those on Wheeler Peak. Currey acknowledged years later that he knew it was an old tree, but he didn’t imagine it was the oldest in the world.
Today, six decades later, only its stump remains where Prometheus once stood, a witness to one of the longest-living beings in history. Currently, these trees have greater protection and are recognized as invaluable natural heritage.
The oldest trees on the planet today
- Methuselah (California, USA): a bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva) about 4,850 years old, considered the oldest confirmed non-cloned individual organism by complete rings. Its exact location in the Inyo National Forest is kept secret to protect it.
- Gran Abuelo (Chile): a Patagonian Cypress (Fitzroya cupressoides) in the Alerce Costero National Park, whose estimated age exceeds 5,400 years according to computational models. If confirmed by complete rings, it would be the longest-living tree on the planet.
The story of Prometheus reminds us of the fragility of long-lived beings and the importance of protecting them. Although its felling was accidental, its legacy lives on as a warning and as a symbol of the need to preserve the trees that have witnessed millennia of natural history.
