A professor at the University of South Florida (USF) analyzed a 2,000-year-old Egyptian mug and discovered that the ancient object once held a psychedelic concoction used in a magical ritual. The mug ...

The ancient world was shaped not only by empires and monuments but by the strange and symbolic rituals that people believed kept their worlds in balance. Across continents, civilisations practised ...

The study, published in Science Advances, analyzed 82 humans from the Alsace region (around 4300–4150 cal BC) and found statistically significant chemical differences between those treated “normally” ...

How does a concoction of honey, sesame seeds, pine nuts, licorice, and grapes sound? The drink also contains hallucinogens and bodily fluids. It’s alcoholic, if that offers any consolation—and was ...

Archaeologists have found evidence to suggest that ancient Mesoamericans may have consumed tobacco as a drink, possibly for ritual and healing purposes. For a study published in the journal Antiquity, ...

Long before temples, people in the Indus Valley (around 2600–1900 BCE) prayed to Mother Goddesses for good harvests and healthy families. They made small clay statues and offered food or flowers in ...