1. VITTORIO SELLA. Savoia, Margherita, 1906, Sella number R 105. 11.4x15.2" gelatin silver print, c. 1907, on 13x16.5" heavy brown paper. Inscribed in pencil verso: twice Savoia, Margherita / R I 105.

2. VITTORIO SELLA. Savoia Peak (Mt. Stanley), 1906, Sella number R 107 (407). 15.3x11.4" gelatin silver print, c. 1907, on 16.5x13" heavy brown paper. Inscribed in pencil verso: twice Savoia Peak (Mt. Stanley/ 107 / p. 234 / R I 107.

This sale of lots from this auction will directly benefit the Appalachian Mountain Club White Mountain Trails, Research Department and the Club Archive.

Mt. Baker lies to the east in the rough triangle of the Rwenzori Range, with Mt. Speke to the north and Mt Stanley to the west.

Ngaliema/Mt. Stanley in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has twin summits, the highest Magherita Peak at 5109 m. (16,673 ft.) and Alexandra Peak 5091 m (16,703 feet). The minor summits are Savoia Peak 4977 m (16,330 feet) and Kiyanja/Mt. Baker (Edward Peak) aka Grauer's Rock 4844 m 15,892 ft.

Sella worked in all four seasons and under the most difficult circumstances, documenting the highest regions of the earth with extraordinary artistry. Ansel Adams paid tribute to Sella's greatness in a 1946 article for the Sierra Club Bulletin when he wrote, "with Sella's sensitive insight and response the magnificence of mountains is distilled into a high order of expression."

In 1906 as Sella accompanied HRH Prince Luigi Amedeo Giuseppe Maria Ferdinando Francesco di Savoia, the Duke of Abruzzi (1873-1933) and a handful of European guides, mapmakers embarked on a royal expedition to be the first to climb the highest peaks in the headwaters of the Nile. The Rwenzori (Ruwonzori) range straddles the border of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site not only because of the Alpine regions the third highest in Africa because it contains fantastically lush and giant flora and fauna. Rwenzori means loosely, where rain is made or comes from.

1. R 105 Very Good. co moderate wear, mount has heavy edge and corner wear, corners of backing tattered; 1 1/4" tear in backing and print on upper R edge.
2. R 107 Very Good, minor wear, edge wear, mount has corner wear edge wear and tape verso.