The Human Obsession With Crystals May Be Written Into Our Ancient Primate DNA, Study Finds
When researchers placed a foot-tall quartz crystal and an ordinary sandstone rock in front of two groups of chimpanzees near Madrid, Spain, the chimps did something remarkable.
They quickly ignored the sandstone. Then they fixated on the crystal — turning it over, climbing with it, carrying it to bed. And when scientists tried to retrieve it, the chimps wouldn’t let go.
Not for anything less than large quantities of bananas and yogurt, anyway. Some smaller crystals were never recovered at all.
The findings, published March 3, 2026 in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, suggest that the human obsession with crystals may not be uniquely human — and may stretch back at least 7 million years to a common ancestor we share with chimps.
A 780,000-Year-Old Crystal Obsession Gets Even Older
Archaeological evidence shows human ancestors were collecting quartz and calcite stones as far back as 780,000 years ago.
There is no evidence these stones were made into tools or served any practical function — they were seemingly collected just because.
Modern humans continue to be drawn to crystals, sometimes attributing healing or spiritual powers to them. But this study, titled “On the origin of our fascination with crystals,” argues our attraction may be far older than the archaeological record suggests.
The study was led by Juan Manuel García-Ruiz, a crystallographer based at the Donostia International Physics Center in Spain. His career has focused on the physical properties of crystals, but he is also deeply interested in how crystals have shaped the human mind and art history.
His reasoning was straightforward: chimpanzees share a common ancestor with humans from roughly 6–8 million years ago. If chimps also gravitate toward crystals, it could suggest this attraction is millions of years old and deeply embedded in primate biology.
A ‘Monolith’ Experiment Puts the Chimps to the Test
The study took place at Rainfer Fundación Chimpatía, a primate rescue center near Madrid, with two separate groups of chimpanzees described as “enculturated,” meaning they had significant prior exposure to humans and human environments.
In the first experiment — named “The Monolith” after the iconic object in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey — a large, multi-faceted quartz crystal (about one foot tall, 3.3 kg) and a similarly sized sandstone rock were each placed on pedestals in the chimps’ outdoor areas.
The chimps were initially curious about both objects but quickly lost interest in the sandstone and focused intensely on the quartz.
In one group, the alpha female removed the crystal from its pedestal, after which the group rarely let it out of their sight. A 50-year-old male named Yvan was filmed carrying it while climbing and eating.
“The way they “studied” it there, turning it over to observe it from different angles, was amazing,” García-Ruiz said in an interview with IFL Science.
In the other group, a chimp named Sandy immediately grabbed both objects and took them inside their sleeping corridor.
The Chimps Were Seen Sorting Crystals From Stones
A second experiment pushed the question further. Researchers placed pebble piles containing a few small quartz and calcite crystals in the yard. The chimps quickly and deliberately picked the crystals out from among the regular pebbles.
They examined them by rotating them in the light, held them up to their eyes and carried them in their mouths — which is unusual chimp behavior and may indicate they considered the objects precious.
Security cameras later revealed one chimp still holding a crystal while settling into his sleeping area.
A third experiment added pyrite, a more metallic and cubic-shaped crystal, to the pebble piles alongside quartz and calcite. Sandy scooped up a mouthful of the mix, climbed to an elevated platform and separated all three crystal types from the regular pebbles.
Since quartz, calcite and pyrite differ in transparency, symmetry and surface sheen, this sorting ability surprised the researchers.
What the Experiments Could Tell Us About Evolution
The chimps appeared to be attracted to the crystals’ geometric regularity and their ability to transmit or reflect light — qualities that are rare in the natural world, where most objects are irregular or curved.
As the study noted: “The chimpanzees’ interest in crystals goes beyond novelty.”
García-Ruiz believes crystals, as the only naturally occurring objects with precise geometric shapes, may have played a role in helping early humans develop abstract and mathematical thinking.
“We were pleasantly surprised by how strong and seemingly natural the chimpanzees’ attraction to crystals was. This suggests that sensitivity to such objects may have deep evolutionary roots,” García-Ruiz wrote in a statement.
“If our results are correct, then we have had crystals on our minds for at least 7 million years,” García-Ruiz told IFL Science.
That is a fact worth bringing to the group chat.
This article was created by content specialists using various tools, including AI.
