Emilio Comici

Leonardo Emilio Comici (21 February 1901 – 19 October 1940) was an Italian mountain climber and caver. He made numerous ascents in the Eastern Alps, particularly in the Dolomites (where he made over 200 first ascents during his career) and in the Julian Alps. Comici was nicknamed the "Angel of the Dolomites". In the 1930s and 1940s Comici and other climbers (including Riccardo Cassin, Raffaele Carlesso and Alvise Andrich) represented the Italian answer to the achievements of German climbers. Comici perfected the Bavarian technique of mountain climbing, and began the era of "sixth grade" climbing (at that time the highest climbing grade considered humanly surmountable). He was the inventor and proponent of using multi-step aid ladders, solid belays, the use of a trail/tag line, and hanging bivouacs, contributing greatly to the techniques of big wall climbing. Emilio Comici was the son of Antonio Comici and Regina Cartago. A longshoreman in his youth, he began mountain climbing after caving for ten years (1918-1927), following the Trieste tradition of mountaineering represented by Napoleone Cozzi and Julius Kugy. As a caver, Comici set a world depth record of 500 metres (1,600 ft) near Trieste. He began climbing at the suggestion of friends from the Trieste chapter of the Italian Alpine Club, gaining his first experience in the nearby Val Rosandra. In 1932 Comici moved to Lake Misurina in the municipality of Auronzo di Cadore, where he opened a climbing school. Comici's students included Riccardo Cassin, later a prominent climber. From 1938 to 1940 he served as podestà (mayor) of Sëlva in Val Gardena, where he also directed the ski school. He was a supporter of the Fascist regime of Benito Mussolini, which promoted him by sending him on lecture tours. He died in an accidental fall caused by a frayed rope on the training cliffs of the Sëlva climbing area in Val Gardena. For a long time the precise circumstances were not reported by the Fascist authorities, who did…

Known for

Acting

Born

1901-02-21

Died

1940-10-19