Tambohorn or Pizzo Tambo (Swiss names) or Pizzo Tambò (used in Italy) is a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

located at the eastern extremity of the

Lepontine Alps The Lepontine Alps (, , ) are a mountain range in the north-western part of the Alps. They are located in Switzerland (Valais, Ticino, Canton of Uri, Uri and Graubünden) and Italy (Piedmont and Lombardy). The Simplon Tunnel, Simplon rail tunnel ...

on the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

border. The mountain lies on the German-Italian language border, west of the

Splügen Pass The Splügen Pass (; ; ) is an Alpine mountain pass of the Lepontine Alps. It connects the Swiss, Grisonian Splügen to the north below the pass with the Italian Chiavenna to the south at the end of the Valle San Giacomo below the pass ...

which divides the Western Alps from the Eastern Alps. Pizzo tambo panorama

Reaching a height of 3,279 metres, it is the highest peak in the Mesolcina sub-chain which, starting from the

Lugano Prealps The Lugano Prealps (''Prealpi Luganesi'' or ''Prealpi Lombarde Occidentali'' in Italian language, Italian) are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps. They are located in Canton Ticino (southern Switzerland) and Lombardy (northern Ital ...

northwards, ends near the

on the boundary between

Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...

(northern Italy) and the Graubünden canton of Switzerland. The Tambo is composed mostly of

metamorphic rock Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock in a process called metamorphism. The original rock ( protolith) is subjected to temperatures greater than and, often, elevated pressure of or more, caus ...

such as

gneiss Gneiss (pronounced ) is a common and widely distributed type of metamorphic rock. It is formed by high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic processes acting on formations composed of igneous or sedimentary rocks. This rock is formed under p ...

mica-schist Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock generally derived from fine-grained sedimentary rock, like shale. It shows pronounced ''schistosity'' (named for the rock). This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a ...

and

phyllite Phyllite ( ) is a type of foliation (geology), foliated metamorphic rock formed from slate that is further metamorphosed so that very fine grained white mica achieves a preferred orientation.Stephen Marshak ''Essentials of Geology'', 3rd ed. I ...

, with a small layer of dolomite just under the peak. It includes three small glaciers, the severally shrunk Tambogletscher on the northeast flank and the Ghiacciaio del Tambo on the west flank, both on the Swiss side, and the by now larger Vedretta della Spianata (3,000-2,740 m) on the southeast side in Italy. Southwards the massif continues with a series of smaller peaks (the highest being the Pizzo Zoccone) before joining the Pizzo Ferré. ''Pizzo Tamborello'' (2,669 m) is the name of the eastern shoulder overlooking the Splügen Pass.

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Pizzo Tambo on SummitpostPizzo Tambo on Hikr
Alpine three-thousanders International mountains of Europe Italy–Switzerland border Lepontine Alps Rheinwald Mesocco Mountains of Graubünden Mountains of Lombardy Mountains of Switzerland Mountains of the Alps {{Sondrio-mountain-stub

See also

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External links