Manuel Sobrinho Simões and the False Araucaria

A photograph in Vila Praia de Âncora

Pathologist Manuel Sobrinho Simões recalls the first photograph of himself carrying his son Manel on his shoulders.

"It was the first time I was photographed with Manel on my shoulders, following a lengthy framing exercise by my father-in-law. I was about 27 at the time, while our first son was just over a year old. The setting was the garden of the house in Vila Praia de Âncora, and the photograph’s subjects were the boy’s frightened face and the little tree behind us.

I would draw your attention to the plant, which was the crucial feature of the composition. Father Areias had bought it after being told that it was a species of araucaria, and that choice was far from accidental. In front of us stood the majestic araucaria at Dr Morais Cabral’s house, planted in 1886 and recognised as being of public interest in 1995. Without any thought of comparison - which would have been impossible in any case - we always felt we were helping another araucaria species to grow, one that would complement Dr João Adelino [Morais Cabral]’s ‘crown jewel’ and symbolically strengthen the friendship between the two families across generations."

The supposedly araucaria tree

"At first, everything went well. Around 30 years later, when our first granddaughter was born, we recreated the pose, with Mariana on my shoulders and the araucaria already a substantial tree. Sadly, at about that time, the tree was struck by a pest infestation. We called on Mr Rocha, a specialist from Serralves Park, and he was unequivocal: the tree had an incurable disease and there was no remedy.

I have always been very fond of plants generally, and trees in particular, while Manel had become an expert on trees and forests. For that reason, we were especially unprepared for Mr Rocha’s additional news: the tree was not an araucaria (sic). Our world collapsed. We have continued to care for the tree as well as we can, and about three years ago we even managed to take a photograph of me carrying Manuelzinho, the youngest grandson, on my shoulders. I was 75 then, and the contest is now between me and the false araucaria in terms of survival."

Manuel Sobrinho Simões
Doctor, professor, researcher
78 years old