Archaeologists exploring an ancient burial cave in northern Morrocco were surprised to find 15,000-year-old evidence of drug use. The individuals in the cave were buried with seeds of ephedra, a genus of shrubs containing the alkaloid ephedrine which is used to treat respiratory issues and as a stimulant with effects similar to amphetamines.
"Ephedra may have been a 'medicinal food' that was consumed for both its nutritional and therapeutic properties, and it could have been exploited to provide several benefits simultaneously such as to mitigate hunger and maintain health," write the researchers from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and colleagues.
From IFL Science:
The researchers acknowledge that we can never totally understand the intentions of people who lived 15,000 years ago. However, they emphasize that it is clear this "unusual and special" plant was consumed in a funerary context, suggesting they understood its significance and strange properties.
"The consumption of special foods and the placement of food debris in highly symbolic contexts, such as burial places, have been interpreted in other archaeological contexts as clear evidence of feasting, and potential sharing of food items with the deceased. Here we suggest that at Grotte des Pigeons, people were using or consuming unusual and special foods as part of a [15,000-year-old] human burial and that Ephedra had a significant place among them," conclude the researchers.
Previously:
• Drug-taking gorillas may hold secrets of future medicines
• Archaeological site discovered where new archaeology lab is under construction
