THE LARGEST AND OLDEST 
LIVING THING 
The General Sherman "big tree" (Sequoia gigan- 
tea). This tree was 2,000 yrs. old when Christ 
was born. At the time of the Trojan wars and 
the Exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt, under 
the leadership of Moses, the tree was a sapling 
20-30 ft. high. It has been alive during all of 
mediaeval and modern history. Its height is 
279.9 ft., circumference of the trunk at the base 
102.8 ft., greatest diameter 36.5 ft., diameter 
100 ft. from the ground 17.7 ft. Note that its 
lowest branches are at about the level of the 
tops of the conifers surrounding it. (Photo by 
Pillsbury.) 
