Section of the Original Big Tree, 92 ft. in circumference 1870 - 1871

This photograph, captured by Anthony and Company, shows us a cut section of a giant sequoia in California. The sheer scale is emphasized by the figures of men standing near and atop it. Note the staircase against the tree, a symbol of human aspiration and mastery over nature. Stairs are an ancient motif, seen in Egyptian and Greek art, representing a connection between the earthly and the divine. Here, it also speaks to the 19th-century impulse to conquer and display the natural world, reflected in the grand staircases of European palaces and public buildings. However, a staircase has two directions; here it also implies a fall or descent. The deep ambivalence of human ambition surfaces, the collective memory of Icarus, and the Tower of Babel resonating within us. The emotional impact lies in this contrast: between aspiration and hubris, between marveling at nature's grandeur and the drive to dominate it.