Adam Rainer

Who was Adam Rainer?

Adam Rainer is the only person in recorded history to have been both a dwarf and a giant.

Rainer was born in Graz, Austria-Hungary. In 1917, at age 18, he was measured at 122.55 cm. A typical defining characteristic of dwarfism is an adult height below 147 cm. Then, likely as a result of a pituitary tumor, he had a dramatic growth spurt so that by 1931 he had reached a height of 218 cm. As a result of his gigantism he became bedridden for the rest of his life. When he died in 1950 he had reached a height of 234 cm. His feet measured 33.3 cm, and his hands 23.9 cm. He weighed only 109 kg.