Scientists have found traces of ancient opiates in the remains of Egyptian alabaster vase linings, indicating that opiate use was woven into the fabric of the culture. And the Egyptians didn’t just do it occasionally: According to a paper published in the Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology, opium use may have been a part of daily life.
In recent years, archaeologists have been applying the tools of pharmacology to artifacts excavated in collections around the world. As mentioned earlier, there is ample evidence that humans in many cultures throughout history have used various hallucinogenic substances in religious ceremonies or shamanic rituals. This includes not only ancient Egypt but also ancient Greek, Vedic, Maya, Inca and Aztec cultures. The Urarina people who live in Peru’s Amazon Basin still use a psychoactive drink called ayahuasca in their rituals, and Westerners seeking their own brand of enlightenment have been known to participate as well.
For example, in 2023, David Tanasi of the University of South Florida posted a preprint on his preliminary analysis of a ceremonial mug decorated with the head of Bes, a popular deity believed to provide protection to households, especially mothers and children. After collecting sample remains from the ship, Tanasi applied various techniques to characterize the remains – including proteomic and genetic analysis and synchrotron radiation-based Fourier-transform infrared microspectroscopy.
Tanasi found traces of Syrian rue, whose seeds have hallucinogenic properties that can induce dream-like visions, according to the authors, thanks to its production of the alkaloids harmine and harmaline. There were also traces of blue water lily, which contains a psychoactive alkaloid that acts as a sedative, as well as a fermented alcoholic mixture that contained yeast, wheat, sesame seeds, fruit (possibly grapes), honey, and, um, “human fluids”: possibly breast milk, oral or vaginal mucus, and blood. A follow-up study in 2024 confirmed those results and also found traces of pine nuts or Mediterranean pine oil; licorice; tartaric acid salts which were probably part of the above alcoholic mixture; and spider flower marks which are known to have medicinal properties.