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Iztaccíhuatl Volcano, Mexico, 1997

The volcano Iztaccíhuatl balances gracefully between earth and sky, as photographed from the north slope of its partner volcano Popocatépetl.

According to the ancient beliefs of the indigenous people's pre-Hispanic heritage, a volcano could be a god, a mountain, and a human all at the same time. Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatépetl together were seen as a fertile couple that gave the gift of life.

(Text adapted from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Popocatépetl: Mexico's Smoking Mountain," January 1999, National Geographic magazine)

Photograph by Sarah Leen