Journey to the Center of the World
July 13, 2021
Photographer: Thomas McGuire
Summary Author: Thomas McGuire
In 1863 Jules Verne wrote, Journey to the Center of the Earth in which Professor Otto Lidenbrock and two companions repelled into Snæfellsjökull, a volcano in western Iceland. They found their way through many dangers, including a subterranean subpolar tornado to reach Earth’s center. The book inspired a 1959 full-length movie starring James Mason and Pat Boone.
The Center of the Earth is not to be confused with the “Official Center of the World” which is located in southeastern California, just west of Yuma, AZ. It was built by former US Marine and parachute entrepreneur Jacques-André at 32°45′01″N 114°45′55″W. More than just whimsical, the centerpiece is an outdoor star-shaped arrangement of 8 double-sided rows of stone and similar structures containing hundreds of panels meticulously depicting and dedicated to human cultural heritage, diverse religious foundations and our planet’s natural history.
A bronze rendering of Michelangelo's Arm of God serves as an accurate sundial (first picture) and points to a granite pyramid containing a plaque Jacques-André has designated as “The Center of the World” (second picture).
Photo data: Canon EOS Rebel T7