Matterhorn
The Matterhorn (in German; Italian: Cervino, French: Mont Cervin or Le Cervin) is ranked, by height, 12th mountain in the European Alps.[2] Its height is 4,478 metres.[3]
 East and north faces of the Matterhorn | |
| Elevation | 4,478 m (14,692 ft) |
|---|---|
| Prominence | 1042 m ↓ Col Durand[note 1] |
| Parent peak | Weisshorn |
| Listing | Alpine four-thousanders Great north faces of the Alps |
| Translation | Peak of the Meadows[1] |
| Location | |
| Location | |
| Range | Pennine Alps |
| Topo map | swisstopo 1347 Matterhorn |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent |
|
| Easiest route | Hörnli ridge (AD, rock/mixed climb) |
The mountain is on the border between Switzerland and Italy, it towers over the Swiss village of Zermatt and the Italian village Breuil-Cervinia in the Val Tournanche. The name of the mountain comes from the German words Matte, meaning valley or meadow, and Horn, which means peak.[4]
Matterhorn Media
View on the south and east faces and the area of the Theodul Pass between Italy (left) and Switzerland (right)
Banner cloud formation on the Matterhorn
The Matterhorn on the National Map of Switzerland
View on the east face with alpine lake
View from the summit towards Monte Rosa with the valleys of Mattertal (left) and Valtournenche (right)
Aerial panorama of the Matterhorn from the Gornergrat 170622
Different layers of rock can be seen: the lower part is sedimentary rock (brown); the middle part is greenschist from the oceanic crust. The peak itself is gneiss from the African continent.
Flight around the Matterhorn
View from the train to the Gornergrat
Plaque on the front wall of the Monte Rosa Hotel, commemorating the first ascent by Edward Whymper
References
- ↑ Arnold Lunn, Matterhorn Centenary, Allen & Unwin, 1965 (p. 25)
- ↑ Even though the Matterhorn is very famous, both because of its beauty, and because it is hard to climb, it is not one of the 100 tallest mountains in the Alps. Several mountains near it, including Monte Rosa, the Dom, Liskamm and the Weisshorn, are taller.
- ↑ NHK, "Matterhorn: Majestic Peak that Pierces the Sky -- Switzerland, 4,478 m"; retrieved 2012-5-24.
- ↑ Swiss Mountains - Names www.swissworld.org Retrieved 26 November 2007.
- Charles Gos, Le Cervin (Attinger, 1948)
- Edward Whymper, Scrambles Amongst the Alps (1871)
Notes
- ↑ Despite its prominence in a local sense, the Matterhorn is not among the top 100 mountains in the Alps measured by topographic prominence. Its close neighbors Monte Rosa, the Dom, Liskamm and the Weisshorn, have higher summits. See a panoramic photograph of the view from Finsteraarhorn, to the north. The key col is Col Durand, at 3,436 metres (11,273 ft), between the Matterhorn and the Weisshorn.
Other websites
- Virtual ascent of the Hörnli Ridge with 360 degree panoramas Archived 2006-09-09 at the Wayback Machine
- Alpinist Magazine Archived 2007-10-17 at the Wayback Machine Mountain Profile - Issue 16
- Matterhorn Webcams Archived 2006-11-16 at the Wayback Machine
- Matterhorn on Summitpost
- PeakWare info on Matterhorn Archived 1999-10-13 at the Wayback Machine
- Matterhorn on 4000er.de
- Walt Disney and Zermatt
- Chronology of climbs - in German
- Photo gallery dedicated to Matterhorn and surrounding nature (in English)
