Cycle Session Spotlight: Juan Vilanova y Piera and the Birth of Spanish Natural Sciences
Alicante Cultural Institute Juan Gil-Albert introduces a new cycle of talks with a focus on the influential figure Juan Vilanova y Piera. This session invites the audience to explore how one naturalist helped lay the foundations of prehistory, geology, and paleontology in Spain during the second half of the nineteenth century.
The event takes place at Casa Bardín at 19:00, featuring Salvador Ordoñez, a professor of Petrology and Geochemistry; Daniel Belmonte, a historian who studied at the Department of History; and Ana Satorre, a cultural technician with Crevillent town. These experts will illuminate the work of Vilanova y Piera and discuss his enduring impact on the Valencian scientific landscape. After the talk, an audio-visual presentation will detail the career and contributions of this notable Valencian scientist to both local and national inquiries into natural history.
Juan Vilanova y Piera (1821–1893) served as a Professor of Paleontology at the University of Madrid and was a member of the Spanish Society of Natural History as well as the Royal Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences. His notable contributions include defending the originality of Altamira cave paintings and supporting the early existence of Bronze Age cultures. Later studies in Alicante confirmed aspects of his hypotheses through analyses of local formations such as Les Llometes de Alcoi and La Serreta la Vella de Monóvar, among others.
Salvador Ordoñez holds a PhD in Geological Sciences from the Complutense University in Madrid. He has had a long academic career and currently serves as an honorary collaborator with the Department of Earth Sciences and Environment at the University of Alicante. His research includes investigations into travertine deposits in the region, as well as the ferrous beds in the Aguas de Busot area and spherical concretes found near Crevillente.
Daniel Belmonte earned his history degree at the University of Alicante and at MARQ. He has participated in several research and museum projects at sites such as Tossal de Manises and Illeta dels Banyets. In recent years, his work has emphasized the recovery of the first human settlements south of Alicante and the broader study of Jiménez de Cisneros in the Alicante southlands.
Ana Satorre directs the Municipal House of Culture “José Candela Lledó” and the Municipal Public Library of Crevillente “Enric Valor.” Her leadership has connected cultural institutions with the municipal Ethnographic Council, advancing local programming and community access to cultural history.
New YouTube Channel
To broaden access for audiences near and far, the institute has begun streaming its activities on YouTube. The channel provides both live broadcasts and recorded content under the handle of the Cultural Institute of Alicante Juan Gil-Albert, enabling easier discovery for viewers interested in Spanish natural history, archaeology, and regional geology. (citation: Alicante Cultural Institute)