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January 15th, 2026
by Isaiah Janisch
Gigantopithecus was a genus of ape that lived in rainforests amongst the trees. Because of the shape of their teeth, some scientists believe that fruits, seeds, and leaves were the most common foods eaten by the animals. However, some argue they ate bamboo similar to other apes. It was thought that the males would fight and compete to dominate the trees. But, after measuring the upper canines, scientists think these fights didn't include a display of teeth. Additional measurements of the teeth taught experts about more than fighting and eating habits. By looking at the tooth size, scientists found that males were far bigger than female apes. While these beasts of the trees may sound healthy, their molars and mandibles tell a different story. Cavities and poor enamel were common occurrences in their teeth. It's said the primates lived under birch and oak trees, and that they could grow as tall as 8 to 10-feet--the largest of any ape, according to a number of scientists. In 1957, Pei Wenzhong, a palaeontological scientist, found numerous animal bones and ape teeth together in a cave, so he concluded the primates ate meat and lived in caverns rather than trees. But later, the animals were confirmed to be tree -dwellers in 1975 after scientists noticed their mouths matched the shape of plant-eating Giant Pandas. The mouths of carnivores and omnivores have distinctively shaped teeth that look nothing like those found in these apes. Experts say these animals ate plants and lived in trees, like other apes. But how can scientists claim all of this when the only bones they've found are two jaws and some teeth?
Author note:
Gigantopithecus was written as a sestina – a seven-stanza poetic form that is based on six repeating words.
The stanzas consist of six lines ending in a different word. In the following stanza, the six end words are rotated to the end
of a different line in a specific order. The order repeats until each word has appeared at the end of all lines from 1 to 6.
The poem concludes with a 3-line stanza in which two of the end words appear somewhere in each line.
The sestina was chosen because piecing together a large poem using a small number of known words reminded me of how paleontologists pieced together the natural history of the gigantopithecus from just a few bones. The large size and length are also reminiscent of the monstrous magnitude of gigantopithecus.
About the Poet
Isaiah Janisch resides in Evansville, Wisconsin, United States.
Read the poet's biography and Wax Poetry and Art publications
on Isaiah Janisch's Artist Page.
This poem is included in Poetry World #14, published in the Wax Poetry and Art Library.
Keywords: prehistoric, science, puzzle, sestina
Previously published in Chicago Poetry Magazine:
The Night I Didn't Cry
by Nikkiema S. Harris
Chicago Poetry Magazine is part of the Wax Poetry and Art Network.
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