Hair analysis: Was cannabis already being used 2,800 years ago?
Keystone-SDA
People are thought to have been using cannabis as long as 2,800 years ago, according to a new analysis with Swiss involvement. Researchers have detected traces of typical active compounds, such as cannabinol, in the hair of individuals buried in a monumental princely tomb in southern Siberia.
In addition, over 1,000 hemp plant seeds were found, as reported in the journal Science by the team led by Gino Caspari from the Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology in Jena and the University of Bern.
Cannabis refers to the hemp plant Cannabis sativa, in particular its dried flowers, leaves, stems and seeds. The plant contains many chemical compounds, including more than 100 cannabinoids, most notably the main active ingredient, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
“The molecular traces in the hair and the cannabis seeds come from the same grave and suggest that cannabis was used for its intoxicating effects,” said Caspari. His team dated several seeds to around 2,800 years ago.
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THC content and method of use remain unclear
Although only faint traces of the psychoactive substance tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) were found in the hair samples, there were clear signs of cannabinol (CBN). This breakdown product is formed when THC reacts with oxygen. It remains unclear whether cannabis was actively consumed for its intoxicating effects. It was also stated that it is not possible to draw conclusions about the THC content of plants from that period.
The monumental burial mound ‘Tunnug 1’ in southern Siberia is considered one of the largest and oldest royal tombs in the region and is attributed to the Scythian horsemen. At the centre of the burial mound, the researchers uncovered four wooden structures containing three individual burials and one multiple burial. The interred individuals lay within the timber-reinforced clay structure of the burial mound, “on top of which a large number of horses were sacrificed in the form of a ghostly procession of horsemen”, the study’s authors write in Science.
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Animal and human sacrifices for the ruler’s tomb
They assume that human sacrifices were also made for the procession of horsemen – scattered human bones were also found. It is possible that cannabis was used to calm the individuals designated for the rituals. Another possible effect is also conceivable: the researchers speculate that the scent of the hemp plants’ inflorescences may have been used during burial rituals to mask the smell of decomposing flesh.
They point to another Scythian grave where cannabis seeds were found: Pasyryk in the Altai Mountains. In 2019, scientists also reported in the journal Science Advances on cannabis residues in vessels from graves at the Jirzankal cemetery in the Pamir Mountains in the far west of China. The team interpreted this as evidence of the ritual use of cannabis, involving heating it on stones in incense burners. These traces were around 2,500 years old.
The ancient Greek historian Herodotus reported that the Scythians would throw hemp onto glowing stones so that it would vaporise. They would then inhale the vapour and shriek with delight. According to this account, they inhaled the intoxicant.
Caspari’s team has begun to sequence the DNA of some plant samples. “DNA preservation is excellent in this case; this will help us to learn more about the history of the cultivation and spread of this crop in the near future,” he hopes.
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Translated from German, reviewed by an English Department journalist.
