Researchers have discovered cannabis plants in an ancient tomb in northwestern China. A recently published study about the find describes the presence of 13 mostly intact plants that appear to form a sort of burial shroud.
Researchers have discovered cannabis plants in an ancient tomb in northwestern China.
A recently published study about the find describes the presence of 13 mostly intact plants that appear to form a sort of burial shroud; they have been dated to around 2,400 to 2,800 years ago.
According to the National Geographic, the underlying skeleton is believed to be that of a “...35-year-old adult man with Caucasian features.”
His remains were found in a grave at the Jiayi Cemetery in an area called Turpan which used to be popular among Silk Road travelers.
Researchers believe the plants’ inclusion and placement with the man’s corpse were deliberate, since the approximately three-foot-long stems extended from his pelvis to his face.
Based on this example and evidence at other burial sites in the area, the paper concludes that “Cannabis was used by the local Central Eurasian people for ritual and/or medicinal purposes in the first millennium before the Christian era.”
