Fernand Petzl was a French caver who started making equipment for cavers commercially in 1968 going on to create the Petzl Company in 1975. Still producing gear for cavers (2025) they now produce an extended range of of mountaineering gear having bought out another French company, Charlet Moser, in 2020.

We have two descendeurs (French spelling) here in the collection which are basically abseil devices most commonly used by cavers. One is a Petzl for sure (circa 1990) with the relevant markings and we’re fairly sure that the other one is an earlier version, possibly 1970s or 80s. Both have a ‘gate’ which can be opened allowing for them to be attached to the rope without having to unclip neither rope from its fixing point or device from the harness, thereby avoiding one or other disappearing into the abyss! These devices were replaced by the Petzl Stop, we think in the late 1990s, you’ll find a Stop elsewhere in the collection.