1905 Imfeld Map of Mont Blanc and Environs, Franco-Italian-Swiss Border

Making Mont Blanc (Relatively) Accesible.

This is a c. 1905 large-format chromolithographed folding map of Mont Blanc and environs on the French-Italian-Swiss border, prepared by Xaver Imfeld. Generally known as 'The Imfeld Map', at the time it was considered the finest map of the mountain, the highest in the Alps, and the surrounding region yet produced. It also coincided with the advent of popular mountaineering in the Alps, including the creation of alpine clubs and the establishment of infrastructure (with shelters, trails, and, of course, maps) to facilitate participation by a wider share of the public.

A Closer Look

The map is oriented slightly northwest and centered on the peak of Mont Blanc itself. Coverage extends from the Bon-Nant River in France to Orsières and from Gillot to Courmayeur. Topography is marked throughout with contour lines, with elevation carefully noted; a note at the bottom explains that the contour lines were added to the 1896 map in 1905. Settlements and even individual structures are recorded, along with waterways and latitude and longitude lines.

The map was highly praised when it was produced by journals of the time:

To this faultless production all explorers of the Chain are deeply indebted, and for the first time the Mont du Brouillard, the Glacier du Mont Blanc, the Rochers du Mont Blanc, the Glacier du Dôme, and the Aiguilles Grises are all beautifully delineated with scrupulous fidelity to nature. (Mathews, C. E., Annals of Mont Blanc, page 216)

The whole employs the unique Swiss-style shading techniques employed by the engraver, Kümmerly, to display that country's intense topography.

Mountaineering and Mont Blanc

Mont Blanc was first summited in 1786 by Jacques Balmat and Michel-Gabriel Paccard, but the dangers and difficulties of ascending the peak meant that only the rare hardy expedition attempted the feat for the next century. But in the late 19th century, with the rise of popular mountaineering and the creation of alpine clubs (including the Swiss Alpine Club, which was heavily involved in producing this map), Mont Blanc became the crucible of modern sport mountaineering. During this period, climbers looked beyond the standard Chamonix route to seek greater technical difficulty, opening audacious lines across the mountain's wild Italian flanks and navigating the steep granite spires of the surrounding Aiguilles. Groundbreaking milestones defined these decades, including the first successful winter ascent by British alpinist Isabella Straton in January 1876.

The late 19th century also saw the fixture of Mont Blanc's high-altitude infrastructure. In 1890, Joseph Vallot erected a meteorological and physiological observatory cabin at 4,362 meters, providing vital shelter on the upper mountain, which was soon followed by astronomer Pierre Jules Janssen's construction of an observatory directly atop the summit ice cap in 1893. Supported by a strictly organized Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix and the expansion of newly formed national alpine clubs, these decades established the technical standards, safety protocols, and route ethics that defined 20th-century alpinism.

Chromolithography

Chromolithography is a color lithographic technique developed in the mid-19th century. The process involved using multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, to yield a rich composite effect. Oftentimes the process would start with a black basecoat upon which subsequent colors were layered. Some chromolithographs used 30 or more separate lithographic stones to achieve the desired effect. Chromolithograph color could also be effectively blended for even more dramatic effects. The process became extremely popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when it emerged as the dominant method of color printing.

Publication History and Census

This map was ordered by Albert Barbey, President of the Diablerets Section of the Swiss Alpine Club. It was executed by the Swiss cartographer and topographical engineer Xaver Imfeld based on measurements by Louis Kurz, also of the Swiss Alpine Club. The whole was masterfully engraved and printed in Bern, Switzerland, using the chromolithograph technique by Hermann Kümmerly and Rudolf Leuzinger. The map employs the iconic Kümmerly topographical shading techniques.

This map went through several editions from 1896 to about 1940. The present example is dated 1896, but, as mentioned above, can be identified as a later printing due to the addition of contour lines in 1905. It appears to be a c. 1905 issue of the map, as in 1906 an entirely new edition was published by Kümmerly and Frey. We locate examples of this c. 1905 issue at a handful of institutions, mostly in Continental Europe, with examples in North America held by Princeton University, Brown University, and the University of Southern California.

Cartographers

Xaver Imfeld (April 21, 1853 - February 21, 1909) was a Swiss engineering topographer and cartographer. After the family's relocation to Lucerne in 1867, studied at the industrial school there, demonstrating topographical talent. In the fall of 1872, he began training as an engineer topographer at the Swiss Federal Polytechnic in Zurich. He would grow to become one of the most important Swiss landscape painters, relief artists, cartographers, and planners of mountain railways of his time. From 1876 to 1890 he worked for the Federal Topographic Bureau. More than twenty sheets of the Siegfried Atlas are his work. He drew over 40 mountain panoramas, modeled 13 Alpine reliefs, and was responsible for numerous engineering projects. In 1888, Imfeld opened his own office in Zurich as a freelance engineer and private topographer. His works included a relief map of central Switzerland in 1887 and the La Chaine du Mont Blanc in 1890.   Further Details...

Hermann Kümmerly (September 6, 1857 - April 29, 1905) was a Swiss painter, lithographer, and cartographer. Kümmerly was born in Bern. He apprenticed as a lithographer under his father Gottfried, and also studied as a painter. He worked for a time for the Swiss Confederation's Topographic Bureau, which did not have its own printing company. In conjunction with Rudolf Leuzinger, the Kümmerly printing office gradually specialized in map printing. His maps became renowned for their vivid, accurate depiction of topography and his naturalistic use of color. He became particularly well known for his large school wall map of Switzerland, which has hung in virtually every school in Switzerland from 1903 to today. In 1898, his brother-in-law, Otto Julius Frey, joined the company as a cartographer and co-owner, and the company took the name Kümmerly and Frey. In 1931, Walter Kümmerly and Max Frey, the sons of the two predecessors, took over the management and skillfully steered the company through the years of crisis and World War II, despite the prohibition on map printing. In the post-war period, production shifted back to maps and books with geographic themes. Since 1980, the fourth generation has been represented in the company's management by Barbara Elisabeth Peters.   Further Details...

Louis Kurz (1854 - 1942) was a Swiss professional musician and a mountaineer. Born in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, Kurz authored the excellent Guide de la Chaîne du Mont Blanc, published in 1892. He explored throughout the region and was known for his work as a surveyor.   Further Details...

Condition

Good. Dissected and mounted on linen. Wear to linen with slight loss at some linen fold intersections.

References

OCLC 236108319, 1303903028, 313326963, 549664534.