By Salma El-Sakka
A new study suggests humans were using cannabis for its psychoactive effects at least 2,800 years ago, pushing back the earliest known evidence by several centuries. Archaeologists excavating a monumental tomb in southern Siberia found cannabis seeds and preserved human hair containing active compounds, indicating deliberate consumption rather than mere ritual deposition.
Discovery at Scythian burial mound
The dig began in 2017 at the Tunnug 1 site in the Uyuk Valley, home to one of the earliest monumental tombs linked to the Scythians, ancient nomads who migrated from Central Asia. An international team from Germany, Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland recovered more than 1,000 cannabis seeds and strands of human hair from the burial context. Radiocarbon dating placed the seeds around 800 B.C., roughly 300 years earlier than previous evidence from neighboring China.
Seeds and hair point to consumption
Co-author Gino Caspari, an archaeologist at the University of Bern, said the co-occurrence of preserved plant parts and human soft tissue with active compounds is extremely rare. The seeds were deposited within the tomb, suggesting the plant held significance for the community. It remains unclear whether the cannabis was inhaled or ingested.
Findings published in Science
Results were published Thursday in the journal Science. Caspari noted that the discovery allows researchers to "drug test a person that's been dead for almost 3,000 years," providing direct biochemical evidence of ancient drug use.
Expert criticism of hair analysis
Not all specialists are convinced. Volker Auwaerter, head of forensic toxicology at the University Medical Center Freiburg, called the hair analysis "scientifically weak" and said the data cannot distinguish between consumption and external contamination from burial alongside the plant material. He argued that a dedicated forensic toxicology test would have been advisable.
Support for consumption interpretation
Elisa Guerra Doce of the University of Valladolid, who studies consciousness-altering substances in European prehistory, defended the methodology. She credited the authors for demonstrating that cannabis was actually consumed by individuals associated with the burial rite, not merely left as a funerary offering.
Historical context
Ancient drug use has long intrigued scholars. The Greek historian Herodotus described Central Asian inhabitants smoking cannabis around 440 B.C., and seeds have been found in tombs across the region's highlands. The Siberian discovery provides the earliest direct biochemical evidence to date.
