Frenchman, J Charlet, started making ice axes in Chamonix, in the shadow of Mont Blanc, in 1880, catering for the Golden Era of mountaineering. The business went from father to son and at some point..we are not sure when… they were joined by Gerard Moser and the comapnay became Charlet Moser. Forward to the year 2000 and another French company, Petzl, bought them out – the end of another dynasty! The little hammer we have here in the collection appears to go back beypond the Gerard Moser days as only Charlet appears on the pick so an educated guess takes us back to 1950 or earlier. Beautifully crafted and in mint condition, our founder, Mick Tighe, bought this one for a few dollars in a Canadian Army Surplus Store during a climbing trip to the Rocky mountains in the 1990’s.