In the early 19th century, the Alpine ibex was on the brink of extinction: only a few dozen individuals survived on the cliffs of Gran Paradiso, hunted for trophies and in the name of medicinal beliefs. In this book, Franco Brevini weaves together mountain tales, popular science, and historical reconstruction to trace the course of one of Europe’s most remarkable conservation efforts. The narrative shifts from the animal’s adaptations to cold and hunger to the political events that transformed a “doomed” species into a collective heritage: the appeals of forester and mountaineer Joseph Zumstein, the 1821 Royal Decrees banning hunting, the Savoy royal reserve, and then the creation of the Gran Paradiso National Park. But history does not proceed in a straight line: wars, economic crises, and poaching repeatedly bring the ibex to the brink of extinction, forcing controversial management decisions and extremely strict surveillance. The conclusion looks to the present: repopulation efforts and censuses mark a success, but new pressures loom on the horizon: tourism, fragmentation of colonies, global warming. Not merely the chronicle of a natural “miracle,” but a journey into the relationship between nature and power, and into human responsibility toward a symbol of the Alps.