A 2,700-year-old grave unearthed in the Gobi Desert near Turpan, China revealed the world's oldest marijuana stash! The grave belonged to a blue-eyed Caucasian man buried with a number of valuable items.
Nearly two pounds of pot were found in the grave. No, it's not fresh enough to get anyone high. Link -Thanks, Jorge Garcia!
(image credit: David Potter/Oxford University Press)
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.
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.
Nearly two pounds of pot were found in the grave. No, it's not fresh enough to get anyone high. Link -Thanks, Jorge Garcia!
(image credit: David Potter/Oxford University Press)
The 2000-year-old mummies of Ürümchi, found in central Asia along the famed Silk Road trading route, are so well preserved as to show clearly that they seem to be of Caucasoid origin. Where did these people come from? Where did they go? You can find their pale-skinned, light-haired descendents among the people of the region, but the story of their presence in this forbidding land leaves more mysteries than it answers. Mass migrations during the Bronze Age scattered many peoples across Europe and Asia, and these startlingly lively-looking mummies may help answer some questions about this period of human history. Their intact, fantastically colored and patterned clothing captures much of author Elizabeth Wayland Barber's attention--she is an expert on prehistoric textiles. Her enthusiastic descriptions of the sewing skills of these migrant people, while focusing on details, lend an immediacy to this fascinating tale. Black-and-white as well as color photos, maps, and diagrams illustrate Barber's colorful tale of anthropology (Therese Littleton).
The Chinese government has stopped allowing people to study these mummies because of their campaign to rewrite history and claim that this region of China has "always been part of China." (Sound familiar? That's what they say about Tibet, also). They hate the "Caucasian" aspect of these people (red and blond hair, blue eyes, etc.). I can't recommend this book highly enough to anyone interested in anthropology, history, human origins, arts and crafts, even. It's a page turner, which is odd for a book written about what could be a dry and academic subject. Barber brings it all to life.
I'm expecting the story some time in the future:
"2,700 Year Old Pot Sold At Auction, Becomes Most Expensive Dime Bag Ever".
...
Seriously, when people look back in the future at how we treat drug users today, they will consider it the same way we consider, say, the Inquisition, torture techniques of the Medieval ages, locking people in unheated and unlit dungeons, etc. etc. It will be seen as a shockingly cruel, barbaric and stupid practice, and people will wonder how a people that considered themselves "civilized" could do it.