The question of when humans started consuming marijuana has been an open debate for decades. But a new study has pushed back the start date to an even earlier date.
Back in 2017, some archaeologists in southern Siberia found a tomb that dated back 2,800 years. They found that it had elements from the Scythian people, an ancient nomadic culture.
Of all the many relics found in the tomb, about 1,500 cannabis seeds were identified within the tomb. They were also able to test preserved pieces of hair for THC, and it came up positive, in particular cannabinol. This is the primary psychoactive component in marijuana, which confirms they were getting high.
This is a huge discovery and gives us a great insight into this ancient culture, and more broadly into our relationship with cannabis as a species. Put simply, we go way back.
According to the Smithsonian Magazine, we have some passages from the historian Herodotus from 440 B.C.E. who described the funeral practices of the Scythians, saying they would “take some of this hemp seed and, creeping under the felt coverings, throw it upon the red-hot stones; immediately it smokes and gives out such a vapor as no Greek vapor bath can exceed; the Scyths, delighted, shout for joy.” Seems he was onto something there.
This beats the earliest estimates we had prior, which linked weed to 2,500 years ago.
Read the original article at Smithsonian Magazine.
