Gunnar Fredrik Finsen, born in Hamburg in 1907, was a key figure in medical assistance during the Spanish Civil War. He arrived in Spain in 1937, falsifying his Icelandic passport to join the Swedish-Norwegian Hospital in Alcoy, where he worked as a radiologist. His task was to locate shrapnel in the wounded and guide surgeons, a job he himself described as “looking for a needle in a haystack.”

During his stay in Spain, Finsen visited Madrid, where he was deeply impressed by the city's resistance. He collaborated with the Scottish ambulance and solved practical problems, such as the lack of forceps for changing bandages at the Hotel Palace, which had been converted into a hospital. After seven months, he left Spain in October 1937, but his experience profoundly marked him.

His life continued with significant events, including the Winter War in Finland and his participation in the Norwegian resistance during World War II. After being a prisoner of war and a fugitive, he ended the war as head of the naval medical service of the Royal Norwegian Navy in London. Despite not being a Norwegian citizen, he served in the army, air force, and navy of this country.

After the war, Finsen returned to Norway, but his connection with Calp remained. From 1950, he spent every summer in the town, first at the Parador and then renting a villa. In 1951, he acquired his definitive property, a villa with views of the Salinas and the Peñón de Ifach. The Francoist authorities never knew about his past as a Republican doctor.

Gunnar Finsen retired in 1977 and settled permanently in Calp, where he spent the last nine years of his life. He died in August 1986, at the age of 78, and was buried in the municipal cemetery, with the epitaph “A noble man.” His story is a testament to the deep connection he established with Calp, a place he chose as his final home after a life full of adventures and commitment.