Cannabis residue on artefacts from an ancient temple in southern Israel. Archaeologists say it provides the first evidence of the use of hallucinogens in Judaism. Photograph: Laura Lachman/AP
Archaeologists say find at Israeli excavation offers first proof of mind-altering substances being used in Judaism
Israeli archaeologists say they’ve found cannabis residue on artefacts from an ancient temple in southern Israel providing the first evidence of the use of hallucinogenics in the ancient Jewish religion.
In a research paper, the authors say the discovery from an eighth-century BC shrine at Tel Arad offers the first proof for the use of mind-altering substances as part of cultic rituals in Judah, including the first Jewish Temple that stood in Jerusalem at the same time.
In the 1960s, archaeological excavations at Tel Arad, around 60km (35 miles) south of Jerusalem, discovered a stronghold belonging to the ancient kingdom of Judah, and at its core a small shrine bearing striking similarities to the biblical Temple in Jerusalem.
But for decades, attempts to determine the composition of black deposits found on two limestone altars from the shrine’s inner sanctum now located at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem were inconclusive.
Chemical analysis of the samples conducted at Israel’s Hebrew University and Technion Institute found that one altar contained the psychoactive compounds found in marijuana, and the other had traces of frankincense – one of the ingredients mentioned in the Bible for the incense sacrifice in the ancient Jewish Temples, the authors wrote.
The researchers published their findings in the academic journal, Tel Aviv: Journal of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University.
Eran Arie, curator of Iron Age archaeology at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem and lead author of the study, said the discovery was revolutionary, as it was the earliest evidence of cannabis use in the ancient region and the first time we have seen psychoactive substances in Judahite religion.
The absence of cannabis pollen or seeds from the area in ancient times indicates the cannabis was likely imported over long distance trade routes, possibly in the form of resin, known colloquially as hashish. The chemical analysis from the Tel Arad altar showed it was burned atop dried animal dung.
The official state religion of the kingdom of Judah was using this substance, Arie said.
Because of the site’s clear connection to the monarchy, he suggests it could point to how worship was conducted in the biblical Temple in Jerusalem.
Associated Press
*Merci Weldon
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