The Hand of Irulegi was initially discovered in 2021 by archaeologists from the Aranzadi Science Society who were excavating an ancient hamlet at the foot of Castillo de IRULEGIko gaztelua near Pamplona, Spain.
The fossil was discovered in June in Sima del Elefante (Pit of the Elephant in Spanish), an archeological site in the Atapuerca Mountains close to Burgos in northern Spain that is renowned for its extensive fossil collection.
Scientists have revealed that, unlike our Neanderthal predecessors, humans evolved the ability to meditate in order to cope with both past and future pressures.