Starting in 2017, archaeologists conducted a dig at a site called Tunnug 1 in southern Siberia focused on a massive 2,800-year-old tomb. The tomb, which is located in Russia near the Mongolia border, contained the remains of several high-status members of the ancient nomadic Scythian community.
The archeologists leading the dig are affiliated with various academic and scientific institutions based in Russia, Switzerland, Germany, and Sweden. One of the main discoveries from the archeological site was evidence that the occupants of the tomb consumed cannabis high in THC for psychoactive purposes. The researchers’ findings were recently published in the academic journal Science.
“In this study, we present the earliest direct evidence of cannabis use: offerings of plant parts and chemical compounds in ancient human hair recovered from a monumental tomb in Siberia.” the researchers wrote. “The findings suggest that the plant was used for its psychoactive qualities across Eurasia, where specific wild populations might have had naturally higher active compound levels.”
“We show that the practice of cannabis consumption dates back at least 2800 years, anchoring debates around contemporary usage and informing discussions on cannabis in medicine, public health, law, and industry.” the researchers added.
Among the weapons, animal statues, pieces of gold jewelry, and horse gear found in the tomb were roughly 1,500 whole or partial cannabis seeds, along with preserved human hair. Analysis of the preserved hair found the presence of THC, proving that the tomb’s occupants were cannabis consumers.
“It’s extremely rare that we have both preserved plant parts and human soft tissue with the active compounds in it in the same context,” said co-author Gino Caspari, an archaeologist at the University of Bern, according to the Associated Press.
Before this latest discovery in Siberia, the oldest evidence for cannabis consumption for psychoactive purposes was roughly 2,500 years ago in Western China at the Jirzankal Cemetery (ca. 500 BCE) in the eastern Pamirs region.
This latest discovery in Siberia is not the first time that archaeologists have found evidence of cannabis use by the Scythians in Russia. In 2013, archaeologists found gold cups that contained cannabis residue. The cups, which are 2,400 years old, are believed to have been used to burn cannabis for ritual purposes. Evidence of human use of cannabis for non-psychoactive or ritual purposes goes back even farther in history.
“Along with rice, soy, barley, and millet, Cannabis is considered one of the five main grains by ancient people. The seeds found in Cannabis achenes, rich in proteins (such as albumin and edestin) and essential unsaturated fatty acids (such as linoleic and linolenic acids) served as food, input for other culinary purposes, and even soap production.” a team of scientific investigators wrote in the European Journal for Chemistry in 2023.
“To exemplify the long co-existence with hemp, ancestral archaeological relics date the use of this plant fiber as a fabric to approximately 8000 years before the common era (BCE) as a material in ancient Mesopotamia (present-day Iran and Iraq), and to 4000 years BCE and 3000 years BCE as a material for ropes in China and Kazakhstan, respectively. Impressively, until the beginning of the nineteenth century, it was estimated that around 80% of fabrics, candles, ropes, among other items, were produced from hemp.” the paper’s authors pointed out.
“As one of the oldest cultivated crops, Cannabis sativa had already been domesticated in East Asia around the early Neolithic (approximately 12,000 BP), most likely in China.” the researchers wrote. “Early domesticated cannabis was first used as a primarily multipurpose crop until ∼4000 years ago, before undergoing strong divergent selection for increased fiber or drug production.” a team of scientific investigators based in China and affiliated with various scientific and academic institutions wrote in the Journal of Archaeological Science earlier this year.
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