The Mer de Glace viewed from Montenvers, Mont Blanc region, French Alps. The left-hand picture is an extract from a painting by Birman soon after the Little Ice Age maximum. The right-hand photograph was taken from a similar position in 2000. Arrows indicate similar positions on the glacier margins, and indicate the level of glacier-surface lowering. Painting from Gugelmann Collection, Swiss National Library, Bern; photo by M. J. Hambrey, 2000.