Credit: ©The Royal Society
    Image number: RS.14145

    Matterhorn

    Date
    late 19th century
    Creator
    Unknown, Photographer
    Object type
    Archive reference number
    Material
    Technique
    Dimensions
    height (print): 198mm
    width (print): 250mm
    Subject
    Content object
    Description
    Landscape view of the Matterhorn as seen from the Theodul Glacier, possibly the Theodul Pass. Six men are photographed, together with horses, makeshift cabins and a telescope. One stands apart from the group holding a large pole, an instrument that likely aided him in his ascent.

    Forward facing inscription: ‘Theodule Mont Cervin’

    The Theodul Glacier is a glacier located in the Alps, south of Zermatt in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. The Theodul Pass is a mountain pass that lies between the Matterhorn on the west and the Breithorn on the east.

    Scientific investigations on glaciers engaged many geologists and natural philosophers of the nineteenth century. James David Forbes and John Tyndall are among two of the Royal Society’s Fellows who travelled to Alpine glaciers during this time and wrote on the subject, displaying a particular interest in glacier flow mechanics.
    Object history
    Purchased by the Royal Society, 2019.
    Associated place
    <The World>
       > Europe
          > Switzerland
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