Matthias Zurbriggen

Matthias Zurbriggen (15 May 1856 in Saas-Fee – 21 June 1917 in Geneva) was one of the great 19th-century alpinists and mountain guides. He climbed throughout the Alps, and also in South America, the Himalayas and New Zealand. He made a considerable number of first ascents, the most well known of which was Aconcagua, the highest peak in the Americas.

Matthias Zurbriggen

The Zurbriggen Ridge on Aoraki/Mount Cook in New Zealand is named after him. On 14 March 1895 Zurbriggen made the first ascent of the ridge and in the process made the second ascent of the mountain and the first solo ascent. He missed the honour of claiming the first ascent of Mount Cook, which was achíeved on Christmas Day 1894 by a party of New Zealanders determined to prevent the first ascent being credited to a foreigner.

Later in life, his fortune declined. He lived his last decade as a vagrant in his home country, and was found hanged in Geneva in 1917.

References

http://alpen.sac-cas.ch/html_f/archiv/2004/200401/af_2004_01_08.pdf (in French)

Persondata
Name	Zurbriggen, Matthias
Alternative names
Short description	Swiss mountain climber
Date of birth	15 May 1856
Place of birth
Date of death	21 June 1917
Place of death