Monte Emilius () (3,559 m) is a mountain of the

Graian Alps The Graian Alps (Latin language, Latin:: ''Alpes Graiæ'' ; ; ) are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps, and the name of an Roman province, Antic Rome province. Etymology The name ''Graie'' comes from the ''Graioceli'' Celts, Celt ...

Aosta Valley The Aosta Valley ( ; ; ; or ), officially the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley, is a mountainous Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region in northwestern Italy. It is bordered by Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Fr ...

, north-western Italy. Located just above the town of

Aosta Aosta ( , , ; ; , or ; or ) is the principal city of the Aosta Valley, a bilingual Regions of Italy, region in the Italy, Italian Alps, north-northwest of Turin. It is situated near the Italian entrance of the Mont Blanc Tunnel and the G ...

, from where it is visible looking southwards behind the lower Becca di Nona, it is usually climbed starting from the ski resort of

Pila Pila may refer to: Architecture * Pila (architecture), a type of veranda in Sri Lankan farm houses Places *Pila, Buenos Aires, a town in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina *Pila Partido, a country subdivision in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina *P ...

, at a height of 1,870 m.

History

This mountain was formerly known as ''Pic de dix heures'', meaning "10 a.m. peak" in

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, as the sun stands right on top of it at 10am, or even as ''Pic Chamosser'' or ''Pic Chamoisier''. In 1839 the priest Georges Carrel (later prior of the

Collegiate church of Saint Ursus The Collegiate church of Saint Ursus (, ) is a collegiate church in Aosta, northern Italy, dedicated to Saint Ursus of Aosta. The original church had a single hall, delimited by a semicircular apse. It was entirely rebuilt during the 9th centur ...

) climbed the peak with a 14-year-old girl named Émilie Argentier, the daughter of the mountaineer and doctor Auguste Argentier (1830-1874) from

Cogne Cogne (, ; Issime ) is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in Aosta Valley, northern Italy, with 1369 inhabitants, as of 2017. Geography Cogne is located in the valley with the same name along a stream known as the Torrent Grand Eyvia. It is ...

, in order to promote mountaineering. The peak was thus named after her. Aostan canons thought about naming it ''Pic Pie'' in honour of

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

, but decided against it as ''Pie'' in

also means

magpie Magpies are birds of various species of the family Corvidae. Like other members of their family, they are widely considered to be intelligent creatures. The Eurasian magpie, for instance, is thought to rank among the world's most intelligent c ...

Ascent

A marked path from Pila usually takes one to the summit, past various lakes, with a bit of scrambling involved. The view from the top includes famous peaks such as

Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (, ) is a mountain in the Alps, rising above sea level, located right at the Franco-Italian border. It is the highest mountain in Europe outside the Caucasus Mountains, the second-most prominent mountain in Europe (after Mount E ...

Monte Rosa Monte Rosa (; ; ; or ; ) is a mountain massif in the eastern part of the Pennine Alps, on the border between Italy (Piedmont and Aosta Valley) and Switzerland (Valais). The highest peak of the massif, amongst several peaks of over , is the D ...

, the

Matterhorn The , ; ; ; or ; ; . is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the Main chain of the Alps, main watershed and border between Italy and Switzerland. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the Pennine Alps, ...

and

Grand Combin The Grand Combin is a mountain massif in the western Pennine Alps in the canton of Valais. At a height of the summit of ''Combin de Grafeneire'' is one of the highest peaks in the Alps and the second most prominent of the Pennine Alps. The Gran ...

References

Mountains of the Alps Alpine three-thousanders Mountains of Aosta Valley {{Aosta-geo-stub