Explore the controversial discovery of nicotine and cocaine in Egypt's 3,000-year-old cocaine mummies, igniting speculation about ancient transoceanic contact.
There is general agreement with the view of Dawson (1934a) that
shemshemet means cannabis, and the identification was strongly supported by the use of hempen rope making. As a drug, it has remained in active use since pharaonic times. It… was administered by mouth, rectum, vagina, bandaged the skin, applied to the eyes, and by fumigation. However, these applications provide no clear evidence of awareness of the effects of cannabis on the central nervous system. (Nunn, 2002)
Although most modern Egyptologists acknowledge a role for cannabis as a source of fiber and as a medicine, few see a role for hemp as a ritual intoxicant, and many researchers claim that the Egyptians were unaware of these properties. As noted in The Mummy Congress: