Humans Were Getting High On Hallucinogenic Drugs 3,000 Years Ago, Study Suggests

Scientists have found clear evidence that the humans who lived 3,000 years ago were getting high on an ancient equivalent of hallucinogenic drugs.

Photo: Consell Insular de Menorca

History is past but it is always so much interesting to learn how our ancestors used to live and what things have changed over the decades.

Apparently, researchers are now able to tell us more about how people in the past used to live, eat and how they used to unwind, and have a good time. 

Archaeologists recovered ancient hair from a cave in Menorca, one of the Balearic Islands, and found it contained compounds that can cause hallucinations or altered states of consciousness in humans.

In other words, the team found evidence of an ancient trip.

The organic compounds that they found as evidence in the hair are actually opium alkaloids which cause symptoms of excitement, delirium, and a rush of energy among other effects. These alkaloids occur naturally and are found in some plants, including nightshade. 

Experts suggest that these plants may have been used in Bronze Age ceremonies; their research is published today in Scientific Reports.

Ancient humans were having a good time getting high on whatever drugs they could make

Photo: Consell Insular de Menorca

The new study suggests evidence of people engaging in rituals where they took drugs and got high, though it's probably a little bit too late to bust them for doing drugs.

Experts figured this out by analyzing strands of human hair from an ancient burial site in Menorca, Spain, the easternmost major member of the Balearic archipelago, an island chain southeast of Spain that includes Ibiza, Mallorca, and Formentera, finding some very interesting substances on them.

This ancient cave was first occupied about 3,600 years ago and was used as a funeral chamber until around 2,800 years ago, according to a Scientific Reports release.

Other studies have found around 210 people buried in the cave, but the new research has found strands of hair placed in containers in a separate and sealed part at the back of the cave.

However, these tested hairs were not merely plucked out of some ancient head, rather, they were dyed red by the ancient community that visited the cave, put in 10 decorated containers made of wood and horn, and placed in a separate, sealed chamber.

The remains of 210 individuals were found in the cave, but the researchers believe only the hair of a select few was set aside in this way.

These hair samples were tested using liquid chromatography and high-resolution mass spectroscopy, and found the presence of atropine, scopolamine, and ephedrine; the former two are found in the nightshade family, and the latter is found in some shrubs and pines.

The researchers theorize that the circles carved into the containers with the hallucinogenic-laden hair were supposed to represent eyes and could have been meant to depict the hallucinations users would go on.

P. Witte/Nature.com

Meanwhile, the drugs that were used for rituals by the shamans were substances derived from the mandrake, henbane, thorn apple, and joint pine plants.

Other studies have found historical evidence of the drug that has been used through the ages, including one which discovered that early Christians may have spiked their wine with hallucinogenic drugs.

No archaeobotanical evidence was found near the cave, indicating that, while the drugs may have been used in ceremonies, they were not involved in burial rites.

Since these alkaloids are found in toxic plants, experts believe these were provided by shamans who must have had the knowledge of how much these materials need to be ingested that would be safe for the human body.

Drugs in the bloodstream can make their way into hair roots and are eventually incorporated into the hair shaft.

Based on analysis of segments of the hair and the average rate of hair growth, the researchers believe that the tested individual was ingesting psychoactive plants for nearly a year before their death.

History has shown us that drugs were being used by humans long before. In fact, back in 2019, a 1,000-year-old drug stash was found in a cave in southwestern Bolivia, and in 2020, traces of cannabis were found in an ancient Jewish shrine.

Archaeological evidence from the Wari empire, which ruled the Peruvian Andes from 600 CE to 1000 CE, suggests the society used hallucinogens and a beer-like beverage at elite feasts.