PREVIEW

Archaeologists have found the earliest evidence of humans smoking psychedelic drugs in the Peruvian Andes. Around 2,000 years before the Inca empire dominated the Andes, a lesser-known society known as the Chavín Phenomenon ruled what is now modern-day Peru. A team of archaeologists from the University of Florida, Stanford University and South American institutions discovered ancient snuff tubes carved from hollow bones at the heart of monumental stone structures at Chavín de Huántar, a prehistoric ceremonial site in the mountains of Peru. By conducting chemical and microscopic analyses of the snuff tubes, the researchers revealed traces of nicotine from wild relatives of tobacco and vilca bean residue, a hallucinogen related to DMT. The leaders of the civilisation, it seems, wielded these substances not just for personal visions but to reinforce their authority. Unlike communal hallucinogenic use common in other ancient cultures, Chavín's rituals were exclusive. Archaeologists discovered the snuff tubes in private chambers within massive stone structures that held only a handful of participants at a time, creating an air of mystique and control. These experiences were likely profound, even terrifying. To those who inhaled, the supernatural might have felt like a force beyond comprehension. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.