Out of all of the mountains that make up the Alps, the Matterhorn is probably the best known. Meaning “peak in the meadows” in German, the nearly 15,000-foot-tall mountain straddles the Swiss-Italian border and has long been a bucket list destination for climbers.
Taller peaks like Mount Everest and K2 may overshadow it in terms of height, but the Matterhorn’s seemingly eternal pop-culture presence makes it easily recognizable to people around the world. Here are five things you might not know about the majestic mountain.
1. The first ascent to the summit ended in tragedy
The very first climb, completed in 1865, was a deadly one with four of the seven members of the team dying in a fall during the descent. Since then, the Matterhorn has remained a risky climb, with several people per year never making it back down the mountain.
2. Each face of the peak points toward one of the cardinal directions
The four sides of the Matterhorn's pyramid-like peak face the four cardinal directions. Talk about a convenient compass for travelers. According to the Smithsonian, "The north side faces Zermatt Valley and the east overlooks Gornergrat Ridge, both in Switzerland, while the south face points toward the Italian town of Brueil-Cervinia and the western side overlooks the Swiss-Italian border."
3. The world's largest snow igloo was built at the base of the Matterhorn
The Guinness Book of World Records confirmed it as the largest in 2016, after construction was completed in January. It was built in the town of Zermatt, and measured 42 feet in diameter inside, with a ceiling height of 34 feet. It was slated to stay open for the entire winter season.
4. Two women waged a fierce battle to be the first female to the summit
On July 22, 1871 an Englishwoman named Lucy Walker became the first woman to reach the top of the Matterhorn—and she did it while wearing a long flannel skirt. When she got word that her rival Meta Brevoort, a fellow climber failed to summit a few years earlier due to bad weather, was also headed to Zermatt, Walker made a beeline for the mountain and started climbing. Soon, news of Walker's success spread across the globe. Undeterred, Brevoort made a successful climb to the summit too. She reached the top a few days after Walker—the first woman to reach the top via the Italian side of the mountain.
5. For one night, the mountain glowed red
In 2015, 150 years after the first ascent up the mountain, a team of Mammut-sponsored guides retraced the steps of the first climbers by placing hundreds of glowing red lights along the mountain's ridge. The result was a temporary light installation meant to recognize the mountaineers who made that original ascent and the lives lost during that incredible journey.
6. The peak of the Matterhorn is actually African rock
The mountain is the result of the collision of two pieces of Earth's crust, the African continental plate and the Laurasian, or European plate. The peak is actually from the African continental plate.
7.The Mountain is On the Chocolate Bar
The image of the Matterhorn first appeared on Toblerone chocolate bars in 1960. Before it, the packaging featured an eagle. Look closely and you will notice a bear hidden in the side of the mountain. It is a tribute to Theodor Tobler who first invented the chocolate bar in Bern.
