Arthur Croft ( 1828 - 1902 )

The Matterhorn seen from the Stockji Glacier, Zermatt, Switzerland


The Matterhorn seen from the Stockji Glacier, Zermatt, Switzerland


watercolour
21 ¾ x 43 ½ in. (55 x 110 cm)
signed and dated 1878

item sold

A late afternoon light is catching the upper half of the Matterhorn’s west flank in this remarkably well-preserved Victorian watercolour. Of its four faces, this side of the peak, the Zmutt Ridge, is the least familiar to artists and photographers and the one that awaits skiers when completing the traditional Haute Route. Arthur Croft’s view was taken from low down on the Stockji Glacier looking across the Tiefmatten Glacier to the Matterhorn. The distinctive, flat Pic Tyndall (4241m) is to the right of the summit on the Lion Ridge separated from the final pitches by a huge cleft that defeated John Tyndall’s summit attempt in July 1863.
Croft exhibited 36 works at the Royal Academy from 1868 to 1893 and was made a member of the Alpine Club to include his paintings and drawings of the Alps in their annual exhibitions. The Alpine Club owns three watercolours by him including a large panorama of the Zermatt Alps which is equally as impressive as this Matterhorn picture.

Arthur Croft