Vittorio Bottego

Vittorio Bottego (July 29 1860 – March 17 1897) was an Italian army officer and one of the first Western explorers of Jubaland in Africa (now part of Somalia), where he led two expeditions.

Bottego was born in Parma. In his first expedition (1892-1893) he explored the regions near the Webi and Imi Rivers in the Juba, arriving up to the clifts of mounts Faches.

In his second expedition (1895-1897) he ventured in the still then unknown region of the upper Juba, Lake Rudolf and the Sobat, along the Omo River, trying to return passing through Ethiopia, then at war with Italy. There he found his death near Jellen in a battle with an Oromo tribe. His body was never found and his last story told years later by two of his companions, Vannutelli and Citerni, who survived the battle but were kept in prison for two years by Menelik II, emperor of Ethiopia.

Selected bibliography

* "Viaggi di scoperta nel cuore dell'Africa" (1895)
* "L'esplorazione del Giuba" (1895)

References

* Vannutelli and Citerni. "Seconda spedizione Bottego: l'Omo" (Milan, 1899)