In 1964, a scientist was granted permission by the United States Forest Service to study some of the bristlecone pines growing in a grove beneath Wheeler Peak. The researcher was very excited to start studying the lessons preserved in the rings inside these ancient trees. Many lessons were to be learned from one tree in particular, named "Prometheus."

Bristlecone pines, like most trees, add a ring for each year of growth. Scientists can study the variation in width to determine patterns of good and bad growing seasons in past years. The trees literally record the seasons of their lives in their rings. This is very valuable for the study of climate change. Dendrochronology is the branch of science that studies tree rings. Dead bristlecone wood is as valuable to scientists as a living tree, since it extends the continuous climate record even farther into the past by overlapping patterns of identical ring growths in different trees.

Tree ring information can also help date archeological sites that contain wooden beams. This has been particularly useful in the Southwest. Radiocarbon dating (carbon-14) is a very common tool in archeology. Bristlecone pine wood has helped calibrate radiocarbon dates that are up to about 10,000 years old. Sea coral is now used to calibrate even older radiocarbon dates.

The Forest Service granted permission for the researcher to take core samples from several old-looking bristlecone pines and to cut one down. Bristlecone pines often grow in a twisted fashion. Also, one section of the tree may die off even a couple thousand years before another part. This means it can be very difficult to capture the oldest part of the tree in a core sample. The tree that was cut down in 1964--while still living--has since become know to some as "Prometheus."

Counting revealed that Prometheus contained about 4,900 growth rings. This made it the oldest known tree. Currently the oldest known living tree, about 4,600 years old, is in the White Mountains of California. Chances are good that there are other, older, bristlecones that have not been dated.

According to ancient Greek myths, Prometheus was an immortal who brought fire (symbolic of knowledge) to humans. Prometheus the bristlecone pine also imparted much knowledge to humans. Information gained by studying this significant tree added to the knowledge of carbon dating (which is valuable to archeologists and paleontologists) and climate data. Perhaps we have not learned all that we can from bristlecone pines. These ancient trees are protected on federal lands so that we will not lose the lessons we may have yet to learn.