Deep in the mountains of Yakushima, a small island off Japan’s southern coast, stands a Japanese cedar so massive it measures over 16 feet wide. For decades it’s been called one of the oldest tree in the world, with some estimates placing its age beyond 7,000 years. Filmmaker Aidin Robbins traveled there to find out if that claim holds up, and the resulting 30-minute video is worth watching in full.
While some date the tree at 7,000 years old, nobody really knows for certain. The 7,000-year figure traces back to a 1968 academic paper built on growth rate estimates from other trees, while a 1984 carbon dating study put the number far lower. Because the tree’s interior has completely rotted away, a definitive answer is impossible.
Beyond the tree itself, Robbins took a look at Japan’s entire forestry history, from feudal lords consuming timber at staggering rates to build temples and castles, to a sophisticated conservation culture that predated Western efforts by centuries, to the industrial clear-cutting that nearly wiped out Yakushima’s ancient groves before a grassroots campaign saved them. The island became Japan’s first UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993.
The footage from Yakushima is stunning throughout. Whether or not this is the oldest tree on earth, he does a great job at making the case that the forest around it is unlike anywhere else.
