Gigantopithecus is an extinct genus of ape that existed from roughly one million years to as recently as three-hundred thousand years ago, in what is now China, India, and Vietnam, placing Gigantopithecus in the same time frame and geographical location as several hominid species. The fossil record suggests that the Gigantopithecus blacki species were the largest apes that ever lived, standing up to 10 feet (3.0 m) and weighing up to 1,200 pounds (540 kg).
Gigantopithecus blacki (Greek and Latin for "Black Giant Ape") is an extinct species of ape.
The only known fossils of G. blacki are a few teeth and mandibles found in cave sites in South-East Asia. As the name suggests, these are appreciably larger than those of living gorillas, but the exact size and structure of the rest of the body can only be estimated in the absence of additional findings. Recent research using high-precision absolute-dating methods has shown that after existing for about a million years, G. blacki died out 100,000 years ago. This means that it coexisted with (anatomically) modern humans (Homo sapiens) for a few dozen thousands of years, and with the most immediate ancestors of H. sapiens before that.
Based on the fossil evidence, paleontologists speculate that Gigantopithecus had an adult standing height of over three meters (ten feet) and a weight of 550 kg (1200 lb), and was thus much larger and heavier than current-day gorillas.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gigantopithecus_blacki
