The Scottish Mountain Heritage Collection
1594.2021.1
Mountain Technology Ice Axe & Hammer
16/03/2021
Hermione Cooper
16/03/2021
Mountain Technology Ice Axe and Hammer with rubber coated metal shafts and three holes in the head. Serrate pick on axe and pointed ferrules with one hole on both.
Metal, rubber
Shafts 48(L) x 3.5(W) cms
2
“GLENCOE SCOTLAND” on both
Silver, black
Mountain Technology
Glencoe,Scotland
Hugh McNicol began his little Mountain Engineering business in Glasgow in the late 1970’s and he kicked off with a wee disaster since the ice pitons/ warthogs he produced were brittle and broke easily - most of them went in the skip, though we salvaged a few which you can find elsewhere in the collection.
Hugh rebranded as Mountain Technology in the 1980’s and moved to a workshop in Ballachullish where he had another wee disaster since the heads of his first ice axes were weak and the adze bent if you tried to cut a step in snow or ice. There are hundreds of them in the bottom of Loch Linnhe if you want a souvenir.
Things improved and Hugh, loveable but eccentric, went on to produce some excellent ice axes and hammers with the iconic Vertigo tools being perhaps the most notable.
The Technical Ice Axe and Hammer we have here in the collection were pretty rusty and headed for the skip but we decided on a bit of TLC and brought them back to life. They once belonged to Mick Tighe’s Mountain Guiding Business, Nevis Guides.
Check out similar items by typing Mountain Engineering or Mountain Technology into our quick search.
Donated by Mick Tighe
16/03/2021
16/03/2021
Spectrum : UK Museum documentation standard, V.3.1 2007
16/03/2021