"The K2, by height, is only the second peak in the world, but taking into account height, danger, and technical difficulty, it is considered the most challenging eight-thousander" Reinhold Messner

The K2, known in the local language as The Great Mountain, is one of the most impervious peaks on earth and the ascent to its summit is far more difficult than that of Everest. In addition to the steep slope, the climb has numerous extremely difficult steep passages at very high altitudes. Just the approach from the Pakistani side involves several stages and requires a more than 2-week-long hike. The Abruzzi Spur is the most common route to climb to the summit and takes its name from the Duke Luigi Amedeo of Savoy-Aosta, who opened it in 1909 together with the famous photographer and alpinist Vittorio Sella. Five attempts were made to reach the summit before the Italian-Pakistani expedition led by Ardito Desio was able to raise the tricolor flag at 6 pm on July 31st 1954, and thus transformed that mountain so impervious and remote into one of the strongest and most cherished symbols of the rebirth of our country in the post-war period.

Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli were key figures of the illustrious endeavor, and crucial contribution was made by both the young Walter Bonatti and the Pakistani Amir Mahdi as well. But the expedition has gone down in history as a success of the entire group that took part in it, who the rhetoric of the time described as the "magnificent thirteen". Among this group was Ugo Angelino (1923-2016), Biellese mountaineer and CAI (Italian alpine club) academic, who had the task of following the organizational aspects of the endeavor, especially with regard to logistics and shipments. The objects and memorabilia of this section (lots 67-81) represent a cross-section of what was experienced at that time as an epic that aroused and still arouses genuine enthusiasm and great admiration.

Mountain Memorabila
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