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Reinhold Messner in 2005 with his late brother's first shoe in Islamabad
Photo: Olivier Matthys/dpa
According to his own statements, Reinhold Messner received his dead brother's second shoe on Sunday.
“Günther’s second shoe finally arrived from Pakistan today,” the 79-year-old wrote in an Instagram post.
Almost 54 years ago, Günther Messner died during an expedition to the 8,125 meter high Nanga Parbat in the Himalayas.
After the first shoe was found in 2005, locals discovered the second shoe on the Diamir Glacier in 2022, according to Messner.
At that time he only received a picture and actually wanted to pick up the second shoe himself and bring it home.
But nothing came of it.
Over the past 20 years, several discoveries have been made in the area in the Western Himalayas.
According to Messner, a bone was discovered at an altitude of 4,300 meters in 2004.
In 2005, the first mountain boots were made specifically for the expedition at the time.
This now stands in a kind of chapel in one of Messner's museums at Sigmundskron Castle near Bolzano.
Messner sees allegations against him refuted
Almost 20 years ago, a heated argument broke out between Messner and former comrades, which was also fought out in court, over the circumstances of Günther Messner's death.
It was about the accusation of insufficient help and the question of where and how Messner's brother actually died.
Messner had always emphasized that he and his brother had descended to the other side of the mountain out of necessity after reaching the summit.
The South Tyrolean repeatedly emphasized that the places where bones and the first shoe were discovered prove this.
The second shoe was found not far from where the incident occurred, as can be heard in the Instagram video.
Glaciers are in constant motion and move downslope over time.
The location of the second shoe finally refutes the conspiracy theories about Günther and the tragedy on Nanga Parbat, said Messner.
“Günther, thank you and thinking of you.”
has/dpa