(ANS – Santiago) – The Silva Henríquez Catholic University organised a concluding ceremony for the 2010-2011 programme, dedicated to the centenary of the arrival in the country of the Salesian missionary Fr Alberto Maria de Agostini (1883-1960). Held on 2 December, the event was attended by the Italian cartographer Giovanni de Agostini.

For the occasion an exhibition was prepared entitled “The cartography of Alberto Maria de Agostini”, containing unpublished maps and historical pictures by the Salesian missionary who arrived in Chile in 1910. The priest went to every corner of Patagonia and carried out what would become the first systematic geographical and cartographical study of the area, until then unknown.

On 2 December his grand nephew, Giovanni de Agostini, gave a conference in which he explained among other things , the technical process used in the production of the first maps of the southern-most point of America. This valuable material is part of the patrimony of Chile  and will be made available to cultural and educational institutions throughout the country.

The intense activity of exploration undertaken by Fr de Agostini in Tiera del Fuego and in Patagonia between 1910 and 1957 was much more than a simple mountaineering activity. Of his innumerable experiences during almost 50 years travelling he left a large collection of photographs, publications, films and conferences, contributing to a knowledge of the “strange geography” of the southern region.

Among the publication quoted by Giovanni de Agostini are: “I miei viaggi alla Terra del Fuoco”, published in 1923 and translated into German, Hungarian and Spanish; “Andes patagónicos: viajes de exploración a la cordillera patagónica austral” (1945); “El Cerro Lanín y sus alrededores: Parque Nacional” (1941), “Paisajes magallánicos. Itinerarios turísticos. (Punta Arenas, 1945)”; “Mi primera expedición al interior de la cordillera patagónica meridional” (Buenos Aires, 1931); “La naturaleza en los Andes de la Patagonia Septentrional. Lagos Nahuel Huapi y Esmeralda” (Torino, 1934); “Ascensión al Monte San Lorenzo. Excursión a la región del Baker” (Buenos Aires, 1945); and “Guía turística de Magallanes y canales fueguinos” (1946).

Published 07/12/2011