The girl is believed to have been around 15 to 18 years old. She lived her short life among a Scythian nomadic people in southern Siberia around 2,800 years ago, before being buried.
She had ingested cannabis containing the psychoactive substance THC, according to an analysis of her well-preserved hair, as reported in an article in the scientific journal Science.
The grave, which appears to have belonged to a person of presumed high status, also contained many cannabis seeds and evidence of both horse and human sacrifice. The researchers say there may be evidence that the drug was used in funeral rituals.
The find is the oldest evidence to date of people using cannabis for its intoxicating effects.
“We have long known that people cultivated hemp to obtain oil and fibers for food, textiles and rope, among other things. However, there is very little early archaeological evidence of when and how people began to use cannabis for its intoxicating effects,” says researcher and co-author Natalia Riabogina of the University of Gothenburg in a press release.
What do you think?