A fine lithograph view showing the panoramic view from Monte San Salvatore, the Lugano’s iconic peak. The panorama showcases Lake Lugano and stretches westwards towards the Po Valley and Lake Maggiore in Italy. The top section features cardinal points, cities, and mountains along with their respective heights. Published in Zurich in 1890 by Hofer & Burger, based on a drawing by the renowned Alpine photographer Xaver Imfeld. This extensive panorama is neatly folded inside a nice cover, which also contains an illustrated advertisement for the Lugano Monte San Salvatore funicular railway, inaugurated on 26 March 1890.
Xaver Imfeld (1853—1909), an engineer and topographer from central Switzerland, was a leading figure in designing panoramas and relief models, as well as in cartography and the planning of mountain railways in Switzerland during his era. He worked at the Swiss Topographic Bureau from 1876 to 1890. Imfeld played a key role in the topographic survey of over 20 sheets of the Siegfried Atlas. He created over forty mountain panoramas, constructed thirteen relief models of the Alps, and oversaw various mountain railway projects along with the planning and construction of the Sustenpass road. In recognition of his contributions to depicting the mountainous terrain, he received numerous international accolades. In 1901, he was honored as a member of the Swiss Alpine Club and later received honorary memberships in the Club Alpin Français, as well as the German and Austrian Alpine Clubs.
