The Glaciers of the Alps

John Tyndall (1820-93) was an influential Irish geologist who became fascinated by mountaineering after a scientific expedition to Switzerland in 1856. He joined the Alpine Club in 1858 and achieved the summit of the Matterhorn in 1868 - a feat which led to a peak on the Italian side of the massif being named after him. He also climbed Mont Blanc three times. A writer of scientific texts who was widely praised for the quality of his prose, Tyndall made clear that in this work, published in 1860, he had 'not attempted to mix Narrative and Science'. He divides his account into two parts: his Alpine adventures and observations, and the scientific explanations about the origins and structural aspects of glaciers. Both sections include explanatory illustrations. This book, a classic text of Alpine exploration, offers a unique account of Tyndall's mountaineering expeditions and the science that inspired them.