The Silberhorn (3,704 m) is a pyramid-shaped
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...
of the
Bernese Alps
The Bernese Alps are a mountain range of the Alps located in western Switzerland. Although the name suggests that they are located in the Berner Oberland region of the canton of Bern, portions of the Bernese Alps are in the adjacent cantons of Va ...
, to the northwest of the
Jungfrau of which it is a satellite peak.
A first attempt to reach the summit of the Silberhorn was made in June 1863 by M. v. Fellenberg from the Stufensteinalp on the east side of the valley of
Lauterbrunnen
Lauterbrunnen () is a village and Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli (administrative district), Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Canton of Bern, Bern in Swi ...
. After 9 hours of most perilous climbing the party encountered an impracticable precipice of rock, and were forced to return. In the following month of August MM. Badeker and v. Fellenberg, with two guides of
Grindelwald
Grindelwald is a village and Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli (administrative district), Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Bern (canton), Berne. In additio ...
, and others, reached the summit from the
Wengernalp. Ascending by the Guggi Glacier, they passed a night on the rocks at the foot of the Schneehorn, a buttress of the Jungfrau dividing the Guggi and Giessen Glaciers. On the following day they gained the desired summit by a long and difficult circuit under the cliffs of the Jungfrau. The still longer and equally difficult ascent of the Jungfrau was effected from this side for the first time two years later.
The northwest ridge was first ascended in 1865 by the Rev.
James John Hornby, Rev. Thomas Henry Philpot, with guides Christian and Ulrich Almer, Johann Bischof, and Christian Lauener.
CH-NB - Jungfrau, von Isenfluh aus - Collection Gugelmann - GS-GUGE-BLEULER-1-16.tif, Silberhorn and Jungfrau 1837 (on the left: Mönch). Gouache painting by Johann Heinrich Bleuler, the Younger (1787–1857)
Johann Heinrich Müller, 1825-1894 E11 Jungfrau.JPG, Silberhorn and Jungfrau c. 1870. Oil painting by Heinrich Müller
In a 1968 letter,
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.
From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...
identified the Silberhorn as it appeared to him when camping near
Mürren in 1911 as "the Silvertine (
Celebdil
In the fictional history of the world by J. R. R. Tolkien, Moria, also named Khazad-dûm, is an ancient subterranean complex in Middle-earth, comprising a vast labyrinthine network of tunnels, chambers, mines, and halls under the Misty Mountain ...
) of my dreams".
Near the bottom of the
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
Lauberhorn downhill course is the ''Silberhornsprung'', a jump with the Silberhorn visible in the background for the television audience.
References
* Dumler, Helmut and Willi P. Burkhardt, ''The High Mountains of the Alps'', London: Diadem, 1994
External links
Silberhorn on Hikr
Mountains of Switzerland
Mountains of the Alps
Alpine three-thousanders
Bernese Alps
Mountains of the canton of Bern
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