Inspired by the grandeur of the Rockies and the Alps, American and European artists strove to capture their power in paint. In the mid-19th century, when photographers, scientists, and armchair travellers were awakening to these wonders, improved transportation and accommodations made mountains and glaciers more accessible. This richly illustrated volume brings together dazzling depictions of the Rockies and the Alps, while investigating how geology, flora and fauna, and social and literary contexts relate to the rise of alpine landscape painting.It features 60 key works by Alexandre Calame, J.M. W. Turner, John Ruskin, Samuel F. B. Morse, Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Cole, Worthington Whittredge, Arthur Frederick Kensett, Charles Bierstadt, Carleton Watkins and Eadweard Muybridge.