The story of Prometheus is one of the most infamous in dendrochronology. In 1964, a graduate student studying ancient bristlecone pines in what is now Great Basin National Park was attempting to extract a core sample when his drill bit became irretrievably stuck. With permission from the Forest Service, the tree was cut down so the research could continue. Only after it was felled did scientists realize what had been lost: Prometheus was over 5,000 years old, making it the oldest known living organism at the time.
In June 2023, entomologist colleague Madison Sankovitz located the coordinates of Prometheus. Using those coordinates and a topographic map, Sankovitz and artist Caroline Landau hiked to 10,000 feet in elevation and found the remains of the tree in the snow. The site was largely unchanged—a weathered stump and scattered cut sections, left where they had been for decades. Landau 3D scanned one of the remaining cuttings, carefully positioning it in the snow to capture its surface and texture in detail.
Back in Oakland, Landau translated the scan into a physical form through 3D printing, then began a mold-making process to render the wood in glass. Using plaster-silica molds, they preserved the intricate features of the original material. The resulting glass object is a direct replica of a fragment of Prometheus from Great Basin National Park.
Sixty years after the tree was cut down, the remnants continue to erode and weather. Landau’s work captures Prometheus as it exists now, while also drawing attention to the circumstances of its loss. The project reflects on human nature—particularly how the pursuit of knowledge, shaped by ego and urgency, can destroy the very thing we seek to understand, especially when it is something far greater than ourselves.
Click here to learn more about Caroline Landau's work, click here. Caroline Landau and Madison Sankovitz are part of GeoSynchrony Artist Collective. To learn more, visit their website.
