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World's Oldest Marijuana Stash Totally Busted

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UrbanFarmer Advanced Member

UrbanFarmer

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World's oldest marijuana stash totally busted

 

Two pounds of still-green weed found in a 2,700-year-old Gobi Desert grave

cannabis-stash-540x380.grid-6x2.jpg David Potter / Oxford University Press Stash for the afterlife: A photograph of a stash of cannabis found in the 2,700-year-old grave of a man in the Gobi Desert. Scientists are unsure if the marijuana was grown for more spiritual or medical purposes, but it's evident that the man was buried with a lot of it. By Jennifer Viegas

Nearly two pounds of still-green plant material found in a 2,700-year-old grave in the Gobi Desert has just been identified as the world's oldest marijuana stash, according to a paper in the latest issue of the Journal of Experimental Botany. A barrage of tests proves the marijuana possessed potent psychoactive properties and casts doubt on the theory that the ancients only grew the plant for hemp in order to make clothing, rope and other objects.

 

They apparently were getting high too.

 

Lead author Ethan Russo told Discovery News that the marijuana "is quite similar" to what's grown today.

 

"We know from both the chemical analysis and genetics that it could produce THC (tetrahydrocannabinolic acid synthase, the main psychoactive chemical in the plant)," he explained, adding that no one could feel its effects today, due to decomposition over the millennia.

 

Russo served as a visiting professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute of Botany while conducting the study. He and his international team analyzed the cannabis, which was excavated at the Yanghai Tombs near Turpan, China. It was found lightly pounded in a wooden bowl in a leather basket near the head of a blue-eyed Caucasian man who died when he was about 45.

 

"This individual was buried with an unusual number of high value, rare items," Russo said, mentioning that the objects included a make-up bag, bridles, pots, archery equipment and a kongou harp. The researchers believe the individual was a shaman from the Gushi people, who spoke a now-extinct language called Tocharian that was similar to Celtic.

 

Scientists originally thought the plant material in the grave was coriander, but microscopic botanical analysis of the bowl contents, along with genetic testing, revealed that it was cannabis.

 

Weird science award winners

 

The size of seeds mixed in with the leaves, along with their color and other characteristics, indicate the marijuana came from a cultivated strain. Before the burial, someone had carefully picked out all of the male plant parts, which are less psychoactive, so Russo and his team believe there is little doubt as to why the cannabis was grown.

 

What is in question, however, is how the marijuana was administered, since no pipes or other objects associated with smoking were found in the grave.

 

"Perhaps it was ingested orally," Russo said. "It might also have been fumigated, as the Scythian tribes to the north did subsequently."

 

Although other cultures in the area used hemp to make various goods as early as 7,000 years ago, additional tomb finds indicate the Gushi fabricated their clothing from wool and made their rope out of reed fibers. The scientists are unsure if the marijuana was grown for more spiritual or medical purposes, but it's evident that the blue-eyed man was buried with a lot of it.

 

"As with other grave goods, it was traditional to place items needed for the afterlife in the tomb with the departed," Russo said.

 

The ancient marijuana stash is now housed at Turpan Museum in China. In the future, Russo hopes to conduct further research at the Yanghai site, which has 2,000 other tombs.

 

© 2010 Discovery Channel

 

 

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greenbuddha Advanced Member

greenbuddha

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Archeology is such a cool field. I love this stuff. This will be an interesting dig to keep an eye on as there may be many more enlightening revelations. Too bad they have not discovered how it was used.

 

420, the Russians back in the 1950s and 60s found MANY burial sites on the 'Steppes' of southern Siberia that had 'cannabis' in them, we here in the States just never heard about it.

 

They also discovered buried with the deceased large incense burner like pots that hung from a tripod. These 'burners' had cannabis residue in them as well.

 

The Scythians, a confederation of what was believed to be a Celto-Germanic group of people also used tents in which they heated rocks and then threw cannabis unto them and inhaled the vapors and smoke that filled the tent.

 

Many of these 'cannabis' tents were found along with the 'burners' I mentioned along with quite large 'stashes' of cannabis for that 'trip' to the next world.

 

'Cannabis' has been around a 'long' time.

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greenbuddha Advanced Member

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White people with dank bud in the Gobi Desert some 3,000 years ago. Makes you wonder.

 

Mezz, genetic testing showed the 'blued eyed' mummies found in the Gobi WERE Caucasian people.

 

The 'educated guess' is that they were some of the same groups of people that migrated into India at about the same time that they made it to the Gobi desert and even beyond into China itself, 3 to 4000 years ago.

 

Yeah, us blue eyed boys have been running around Europe and a lot of other places for a long time now... AND inhaling strange vapors and other exotic things for both recreational AND religious purposes.

 

Now if we could just get some 'legalization' passed here in this country.

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greenbuddha Advanced Member

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maybe the dank was used to cover the smell of the rotting corpse?!

 

:devil:

 

Digi, there is archeological evidence that 'cannabis' WAS burned by these people at funerals and 'wakes' for the deceased to honor their passing on into the 'next' world (the early Greek historians wrote about it).

 

It would appear that it wasn't just the dead guy that went 'higher' that day... everybody there took a little 'trip' also.

 

What a way to go, huh?

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The Digital Nomad Advanced Member

The Digital Nomad

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Digi, there is archeological evidence that 'cannabis' WAS burned by these people at funerals and 'wakes' for the deceased to honor their passing on into the 'next' world (the early Greek historians wrote about it).

 

It would appear that it wasn't just the dead guy that went 'higher' that day... everybody there took a little 'trip' also.

 

What a way to go, huh?

 

Note to self:

Change living will to "cremate my body with 3lbs of Apollo 11 in open fire, in teepee tent. No LEO with fake IDs allowed"

 

:rolleyes:

 

-DN

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greenbuddha Advanced Member

greenbuddha

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ok -

 

When I am dead - you can come to my funeral pyre!

 

Print this out - it is your reciept!

(make sure they light my fire right and don't burn me down the side like a badly rolled spliff!)

 

:thumbsu:

 

-DN

 

Digi, get yourself over to India... you'll be invited to share a LOT of smoke at the funeral pyres along the Ganges river.

 

Seems they never lost the 'custom' of smoking at funerals.

 

But I can tell ya watching a body go up in 'smoke' right in front of you can turn a guy 'religious' REAL quick.

 

Varanasi / Benares is a good place to start out... just follow the rising smoke... can't miss it.

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  • 5 months later...
greenbuddha Advanced Member

greenbuddha

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Humans have had a devine connection with cannabis from the very begining of time as it was a very sacred medicinal erb in countless primitive societies . Its reverence is still seen in India today .

 

All aboriginal people worked with mother earth and she in return worked for them with her bounty of gifts . This article and the rest of mans history with Cannabis should be a valaid reason to explore Cannabis for the first time unlike ever before .

 

Cases like this give truth and very clear validness to the Medical Movt and full legalisation Movt as well .

 

 

Perhaps we should close our eyes in silence and thank those ancestors of ours who kindled the sacred flame that still burns today within Cannabis and cultures . For it was they that truly embraced this plant and brought us this medicine we have come to know and love .

 

 

Love yes , I said love as real medicine is something that treats the mind body heart and spirit together as one, it really does take love to combine this all into a healing medicine , thankfully Cannabis and other Herbal medicines can still help embrace this age old ritual and way of earths children ... OD

 

 

Agree 100%.

 

There are some theories that say that we would not have developed the mental abilities that we now have if we had not encountered and used the different plants and their chemicals that we found in nature.

 

Our lives and our spirits belong to us and we should have the right to do with them as we see fit as long as we do not harm others in living our lives.

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