entheogenic-gnosis
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Peyote alkaloids: identification in a prehistoric specimen of lophophora from coahuila, Mexico
Abstract
Mescaline, anhalonine, lophophorine, pellotine, and anhalonidine have been identified in alkaloid extracts of a prehistoric specimen of Lophophora from a burial cave in west central Coahuila, Mexico. The specimen is associated with radiocarbon dates of A.D. 810 to 1070 and is one of the oldest materials ever submitted to alkaloid analysis.
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Prehistoric peyote use: alkaloid analysis and radiocarbon dating of archaeological specimens of Lophophora from Texas.
Abstract
Two archaeological specimens of peyote buttons, i.e. dried tops of the cactus Lophophora williamsii (Lem.) Coulter, from the collection of the Witte Museum in San Antonio, was subjected to radiocarbon dating and alkaloid analysis. The samples were presumably found in Shumla Cave No. 5 on the Rio Grande, Texas. Radiocarbon dating shows that the calibrated 14C age of the weighted mean of the two individual dated samples corresponds to the calendric time interval 3780-3660 BC (one sigma significance). Alkaloid extraction yielded approximately 2% of alkaloids. Analysis with thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) led to the identification of mescaline in both samples. No other peyote alkaloids could be identified. The two peyote samples appear to be the oldest plant drug ever to yield a major bioactive compound upon chemical analysis. The identification of mescaline strengthens the evidence that native North Americans recognized the psychotropic properties of peyote as long as 5700 years ago.
PMID: 15990261 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
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The shumla cave, Texas, lophophora williamsii buttons dating from 3780-3660 BC only contained mescaline, while the Coahuila, Mexico cave discovery dating from A.D. 810 to 1070 contained the full spectrum of peyote alkaloids.
Amazing...
Here's some comparisons to put this into perspective:
There was a 2,700 year old grave of a gushi shaman found in the Gobi desert that contained around two pounds of cannabis that was determined to have been psychoactive, however all the active cannabinoids had long degraded
Regarding analysis of a near ancient banisteriopsis caapi vine, was this excerpt from the harmaline section of TIHKAL by shulgin:
Still, none of these can compare to the ancient lophophora williamsii buttons which were discovered, the shumla cave loph. Buttons still contained 2% mescaline, and the loph. Buttons from Mexico still contained a full spectrum of phenethylamine alkaloids!
-eg
Abstract
Mescaline, anhalonine, lophophorine, pellotine, and anhalonidine have been identified in alkaloid extracts of a prehistoric specimen of Lophophora from a burial cave in west central Coahuila, Mexico. The specimen is associated with radiocarbon dates of A.D. 810 to 1070 and is one of the oldest materials ever submitted to alkaloid analysis.
Peyote alkaloids: identification in a prehistoric specimen of lophophora from coahuila, Mexico - PubMed
Mescaline, anhalonine, lophophorine, pellotine, and anhalonidine have been identified in alkaloid extracts of a prehistoric specimen of Lophophora from a burial cave in west central Coahuila, Mexico. The specimen is associated with radiocarbon dates of A.D. 810 to 1070 and is one of the oldest...
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
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Prehistoric peyote use: alkaloid analysis and radiocarbon dating of archaeological specimens of Lophophora from Texas.
Abstract
Two archaeological specimens of peyote buttons, i.e. dried tops of the cactus Lophophora williamsii (Lem.) Coulter, from the collection of the Witte Museum in San Antonio, was subjected to radiocarbon dating and alkaloid analysis. The samples were presumably found in Shumla Cave No. 5 on the Rio Grande, Texas. Radiocarbon dating shows that the calibrated 14C age of the weighted mean of the two individual dated samples corresponds to the calendric time interval 3780-3660 BC (one sigma significance). Alkaloid extraction yielded approximately 2% of alkaloids. Analysis with thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) led to the identification of mescaline in both samples. No other peyote alkaloids could be identified. The two peyote samples appear to be the oldest plant drug ever to yield a major bioactive compound upon chemical analysis. The identification of mescaline strengthens the evidence that native North Americans recognized the psychotropic properties of peyote as long as 5700 years ago.
PMID: 15990261 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Prehistoric peyote use: alkaloid analysis and radiocarbon dating of archaeological specimens of Lophophora from Texas - PubMed
Two archaeological specimens of peyote buttons, i.e. dried tops of the cactus Lophophora williamsii (Lem.) Coulter, from the collection of the Witte Museum in San Antonio, was subjected to radiocarbon dating and alkaloid analysis. The samples were presumably found in Shumla Cave No. 5 on the Rio...
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
------
The shumla cave, Texas, lophophora williamsii buttons dating from 3780-3660 BC only contained mescaline, while the Coahuila, Mexico cave discovery dating from A.D. 810 to 1070 contained the full spectrum of peyote alkaloids.
Amazing...
Here's some comparisons to put this into perspective:
There was a 2,700 year old grave of a gushi shaman found in the Gobi desert that contained around two pounds of cannabis that was determined to have been psychoactive, however all the active cannabinoids had long degraded
World's oldest marijuana stash totally busted
Nearly two pounds of still-green plant material found in a 2,700-year-old grave in the Gobi Desert has just been identified as the world's oldest marijuana stash, according to a paper in the latest issue of the Journal of Experimental Botany.
www.nbcnews.com
Regarding analysis of a near ancient banisteriopsis caapi vine, was this excerpt from the harmaline section of TIHKAL by shulgin:
I was led to a comment that had been once made by a quiet hero of mine, Bo Holmstedt in Sweden, concerning the analysis of an ancient sample of plant material from Banisteria caapi (now known as Banisteriopsis caapi). The herbarium specimens he was looking at had been collected by the 19th century plant explorer Richard Spruce in the Rio Negro area of South America and had, after a few years of storage in a moist and mildewy hut a few miles down river, been rediscovered and sent on to the Kew Botanical Museum where they had quietly rested for over a hundred years. When Holmstedt worked them up some 30 years ago, he reported that the alkaloid content was 0.4%. This was virtually identical to a newly collected, botanically verified specimen of Banisteriopsis caapi which he analyzed at the same time and found to contain 0.5% alkaloids. The latter material contained, as described by many authors, the main alkaloids harmine, harmaline and tetrahydroharmine. By contrast, the alkaloid content of the Spruce material consisted exclusively of harmine. It is open to question whether the samples collected by Spruce in 1853 originally contained only harmine or, perhaps more likely, that harmaline and tetrahydroharmine have with time been transformed into the chemically more stable aromatic b-carboline harmine. -Tihkal;shulgin
Still, none of these can compare to the ancient lophophora williamsii buttons which were discovered, the shumla cave loph. Buttons still contained 2% mescaline, and the loph. Buttons from Mexico still contained a full spectrum of phenethylamine alkaloids!
-eg