The discovery of psychoactive alkaloids in hair fragments thought to have belonged to Bronze Age shamans on the Spanish island of Menorca provides the earliest proof of hallucinogenic drug use in Europe dating back 3,000 years.
The hairpieces were found in a hidden section of a burial chamber in the Es Càrritx cave on the island in the Mediterranean. The current study found that they tested positive for the stimulant ephedrine as well as the delirium-inducing alkaloids scopolamine and atropine.
The study's principal investigator, Elisa Guerra-Doce of the Universitat Autnoma de Barcelona, told IFL Science that prior investigations of the cave had uncovered the remains of at least 210 people who were interred there between 1400 BCE and 800 BCE.
Many of the dead had been discovered with hair that had been dyed red, and some had been buried with colored hair in tubes made of bone or wood.
Researchers did find an additional 10 tubes with hair inside of them and other artifacts from the historical period hidden below a layer of clay in a previously unknown area deep inside the cave.
According to the study, ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography and high-resolution mass spectroscopy were used to identify the presence of mind-altering drugs.
Guerra-Doce told IFL Science, "The interesting thing about this work is that it documents the intake [of hallucinogenic plants] in human samples for the first time.
Despite the fact that these were all indirect indications, she continued, "plants with psychotropic effects had already been identified in several archaeological contexts, including those that are far older than Es Càrritx."
Plants in the Datura genus, which have been linked to witchcraft and sorcery in the West for ages, contain scopolamine and atropine.
The findings, according to Guerra-Doce, "indicate that these folks genuinely absorbed these chemicals, which were derived from diverse plants," rather than necessarily implying that these individuals were swallowing the plants to experience euphoria.
The study discovered that the alkaloids present in hair can result in "severe mental confusion, powerful and realistic hallucinations, disorientation... [and] out-of-body experiences and a feeling of modification of the skin, as if growing fur or feathers."
The handling, use, and applications of the alkaloids detected in the hair "expressed highly specialized knowledge," the researchers stated.
The hair was thought to be that of ancient shamans because of this specific understanding, according to researchers.
Concentric rings adorned the tubes where the hair was discovered, which scholars believe may be a representation of the "inner vision" that shamans saw after consuming hallucinogenic substances.
According to Guerra-Doce, who spoke to IFL Science, the tubes may have been carefully buried as a result of "social instability" among the Menorcan populace about 3,000 years ago.
According to researchers, "in this context, in the cave of Es Càrritx, some individuals reluctant to abandon ancient traditions, concealed a collection of ritual objects belonging to certain members of the community, possibly shamans, in the hope that the previous social order could be re-established in the future."
