The Alps and the imagination

In the late 19th century, mountaineer and essayist Sir Leslie Stephen wrote that the Alps were "Europe's Playground." His words were prescient: the Alps are today one of the continent's most valued recreation areas. However, the importance of Stephen's words can only be appreciated when set in historical context. One hundred years earlier, his remark would have been laughed at. Until the late 18th century the Alps were a source of fear to travellers and of mystery to scientists. They were an uncharted wilderness at the heart of the world's most crowded continent. Yet, within a remarkably short space of time, they were mapped, developed and exploited. Their current status as "playground" is bound intrinsically to a shift in imagination, beginning in the 16th century and accelerating dramatically between the years 1800 and 1914, that has transformed them, in popular perception, from a realm of terror and superstition to one of beauty, relaxation and contemplation. Driven by fresh perspectives in the fields of science, music, literature and aesthetics, the metamorphosis has affected our appreciation not only of the Alps but of every mountain range in the world.