THE CERVIN / MATTERHORN BY EUGENE BRACHT

EUGEN BRACHT (1842 - 1921)

Cervin or Matterhorn (4,478m -14,691ft)

Switzerland - Italy border

In Das Matterhorn von Westen, 1907, Oil on canvas. 

The mountain 

The  Mont Cervin (4,478m -14,691ft) also known as the Matterhorn is an alpine summit located on the Swiss-Italian border between the canton of Valais and the Aosta Valley in Switzerland. It has several other names: Cervino in Italian, Grand'Bèca in Arpitan, Matterhorn in German. The Cervin / Matterhorn is the most famous mountain in Switzerland, including the pyramidal shape that it offers from the village of Zermatt, in the German-speaking part of the canton of Valais.

Its four sides are joined about 400 meters below the summit in a summit pyramid, called "roof." Its summit is a broad ridge about two meters, on which stand actually two summits: one called "Swiss summit," the farther east, and the "Italian summit" slightly lower (4,476 meters), on the west side of the ridge. The two are separated by a notch in the hollow of which a cross was laid in September 1901. Its north face is one of the three great north faces of the Alps with the Eiger and the Grandes Jorasses. The most famous faces of the Matterhorn are the faces east and north, seen from Zermatt. The first 1, 000 meters high, has great risk of falling rocks, which makes it dangerous climb. The north face high of 1100 meters, is one of the most dangerous sides of the Alps, particularly because of the risks of landslides and storms. The south side, overlooking the Breuil (Valtournenche above) is high, it, 1 350 meters. This is the face that offers the most channels. And finally, the west face the highest with its 1400 meters, is the one that is the subject of fewer climbs attempts. Between the west side and the north side there is also the north-northwest side, which does not stretch to the summit but stopped Zmutt Nose, on the bridge of the same name. This is the most dangerous route for climbing the Matterhorn. There is also a south-facing southeast, deemed to be the most difficult of the south face route, which leads to the Pic Muzio, on Furggen Shoulder.

Due to its pyramidal form, the Matterhorn has four main ridges, through which pass most of climbing routes. The easiest ridge, that borrows the normal route, is the Hörnli ridge (Hörnligrat in German): it is between the faces east and north, facing the Zermatt valley. Further west lies the Zmutt ridge (Zmuttgrat), between the north and west sides. Between the western and southern sides is the Lion ridge (Liongrat), also known as Italian ridge, which passes through the Tyndall peak, summit of the southern part of the west side, at which begins the upper face. Finally, the south side is separated from the face is Furggen

Swiss normal route from the cabin of the Hörnli, located at 3260 meters. Since Zermatt is accessed by gondola Schwarzsee; there are 700 vertical meters to the hut and 1200 vertical meters to the summit.

Difficulty (Hörnli ridge): AD (fairly difficult), 3 climbing passage; fixed ropes were installed near the top for easy ascension.

The Italian normal route, taking his departure in Breuil, follows almost entirely the southwest ridge, called the Lion ridge. It was inaugurated by the guide valtournain Jean-Antoine Carrel 17 July 1865.

The climb from the Italian side includes three steps:

- du Breuil (2012 meters) at the shelter Duke of Abruzzi in Oriondé (2802 meters)

- the refuge Duca degli Abruzzi refuge to Jean-Antoine Carrel (3830 meters)

- Jean-Antoine Carrel refuge at the summit (4478 meters).

The ascent by Hörnli ridge, July 14, 1865, was considered the last of the great feats of mountaineering in the Alps. But this ascent error ended at the beginning of the descent, in the death of 4 of the 7 members of the roped Victorieuse.

The painter 
Eugen Felix Prosper Bracht was a German landscape painter born in Morges, Waadt (near Lake Geneva in Switzerland) of German parents. Then he moved with his parents to Darmstadt, Germany where he was a pupil of Karl Ludwig Seeger at the Academy of Fine Arts, Karlsruhe. Later he studied under Hans Gude in Dusseldorf. Dissatisfied with his work, in 1864 he moved to Berlin and became a merchant. In 1876 he decided to become a painter after all and he joined his former teacher in Karlsruhe. He mostly painted landscapes and was one of the famous painters of the late Romanticism in Germany.
He was known for landscapes and coastal scenes in North Germany, and in 1880 and 1881, he made a sketching trip through Syria, Palestine and Egypt. In 1882 he became a Professor of Landscape Painting at the Prussian Academy of Arts. In 1885 he painted the Battle of Chattanooga for the "Philadelphia Panorama Company", a cyclorama which was installed in Philadelphia and Kansas City. Later he became a representative of German Impressionism. In 1901 he obtained a teaching position at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts that he held until 1919.