In the Circle of Ancient Trees: Our Oldest Trees and the Stories They Tell

This captivating book about dendrochronology—the study of tree rings—uncovers the stories of 10 species of ancient trees, their unique environments and climates, and what they have to tell us about the history of our world.

Ingrained and encrypted in the growth rings of every tree are stories of its environment and the events to which it bore witness. In the Circle of Ancient Trees presents the stories of ten ancient tree varieties in engrossing chapters written by ecologists with specialist knowledge. From the Bosnian pine to the giant sequoia, from the United States, to Europe, to South America, these essays explore how human and environmental history share common roots, while drilling down into the ecology, persistence, and resilience of trees.

Beautifully designed, and illustrated with wood-engravings and graphics that visualize each tree’s chronology and geography, In the Circle of Ancient Trees considers what lessons for our future might be discovered in our planet’s past.

About the Author

Valerie Trouet is a professor in the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research at the University of Arizona. She is a dendroclimatologist, using tree-rings to study the climate of the past and how it has influenced ecosystems and human history. In 2023, she was appointed the inaugural scientific director of the Federal Center of Expertise on Climate in Belgium. Professor Trouet is the author of Tree Story (Johns Hopkins), the winner of the World Wide Fund’s 2020 Jan Wolkers Prize, and the Gold Winner of the 2020 Foreword INDIES Award in Ecology & Environment. For this book, Valerie has collaborated with experts from around the world, each of whom has contributed an account of an ancient tree from their region.

Blaze Cyan is an artist working within the mediums of drawing, etching, woodcut, and wood engraving. She graduated from the City & Guilds of London Art School in 2014 with an M.A. in Fine Art. Blaze is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, a member of the Society of Wood Engravers, and also the Arborealists. Her subject area is landscapes and she has shown work with many leading art and printmaking societies. She is represented by the Eames Fine Art Gallery. She lives in London.