For millions of years, a remote ravine in Pallars Jussà concealed one of the most significant paleontological discoveries on the European continent. Author Jordi Portals reconstructs in his latest work, L'últim gegant (The Last Giant), the finding of the fossil remains of an Abditosaurus kuehnei, the first long-necked dinosaur identified in Catalonia.
The idea for the book emerged from Portals' participation as a screenwriter in a television program, where he gained firsthand insight into the work of paleontologists and the surprising history of this exceptional discovery, which dates back six decades. The author describes it as a true adventure.
The narrative begins in 1954, when German paleontologist Walter Kühne located some fossil remains in the Orcau ravine, in Isona i Conca Dellà. However, the site was abandoned and the discovery forgotten. A second expedition, in 1986, also failed to complete excavations due to a severe storm. It wasn't until 2011 that a team from the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) resumed the work. Among the researchers was a paleontologist, a key figure in both the research and the book, and one of those responsible for recovering 53 fossils of a titanosaur about 18 meters long and 14 tons in weight.
“"The Pyrenees were not like this 70 million years ago. They were a group of tropical islands, and many species evolved towards smaller sizes due to a lack of resources. Therefore, finding a dinosaur of this size in the Pyrenees was exceptional, a question that paleontologists continue to work on."
The investigation confirmed that the ICP's discovery in Orcau corresponded to a previously unknown species, named Abditosaurus kuehnei, which means “forgotten reptile,” while the epithet kuehnei honors its discoverer. This finding revolutionized European paleontology and made the dinosaur one of the star pieces of the Museu de la Conca Dellà.
“"It is not a scientific dissemination book; that is for the experts. It is an adventure novel, about a paleontologist's obstinacy to reconstruct 60 years of research, silences, and emotions; the story of one of the last giants."
