diff --git a/cache-tree.c b/cache-tree.c
index ff794d940f..56db0b5026 100644
--- a/cache-tree.c
+++ b/cache-tree.c
@@ -101,33 +101,6 @@ struct cache_tree_sub *cache_tree_sub(struct cache_tree *it, const char *path)
 	return find_subtree(it, path, pathlen, 1);
 }
 
-struct cache_tree *cache_tree_find_path(struct cache_tree *it, const char *path)
-{
-	const char *slash;
-	int namelen;
-	struct cache_tree_sub it_sub = {
-		.cache_tree = it,
-	};
-	struct cache_tree_sub *down = &it_sub;
-
-	while (down) {
-		slash = strchrnul(path, '/');
-		namelen = slash - path;
-		down->cache_tree->entry_count = -1;
-		if (!*slash) {
-			int pos;
-			pos = cache_tree_subtree_pos(down->cache_tree, path, namelen);
-			if (0 <= pos)
-				return down->cache_tree->down[pos]->cache_tree;
-			return NULL;
-		}
-		down = find_subtree(it, path, namelen, 0);
-		path = slash + 1;
-	}
-
-	return NULL;
-}
-
 static int do_invalidate_path(struct cache_tree *it, const char *path)
 {
 	/* a/b/c
diff --git a/cache-tree.h b/cache-tree.h
index f75f8e74dc..8efeccebfc 100644
--- a/cache-tree.h
+++ b/cache-tree.h
@@ -29,8 +29,6 @@ struct cache_tree_sub *cache_tree_sub(struct cache_tree *, const char *);
 
 int cache_tree_subtree_pos(struct cache_tree *it, const char *path, int pathlen);
 
-struct cache_tree *cache_tree_find_path(struct cache_tree *it, const char *path);
-
 void cache_tree_write(struct strbuf *, struct cache_tree *root);
 struct cache_tree *cache_tree_read(const char *buffer, unsigned long size);