An Ancient Psychedelic Brew & Metal Found in an Elongated Skull
Did ancient Peruvian leaders use hallucinogens to keep their followers in line? And do an ancient elongated skull show evidence of an advanced metal surgical implant or is it just a hoax?
Archaeologists studying the Wari people in the southern Peruvian town of Quilcapampa have found hallucinogenic “vilca” seeds in a recent dig. Writing in the journal Antiquity, the researchers point out they found 16 vilca seeds in an ancient alcoholic drink called “Chicha de Molle,” in an area believed to be used for feasting.
The Wari people lived in this area from about 500 to 1,000 A.D. Their reverence for the psychotropic vilca seed has been found in images at other Wari sites, this is the first find of the actual seeds. What is particularly interesting to the archaeologists is the role of ancient hallucinogens and their influence on social interactions.
The vilca seeds would have come from tropical woodlands on the eastern side of the Andes, a complex trade network would have to be in place to even get them. And adding the vilca seeds with the alcoholic drink would increase the intensity of a psychedelic trip.
That trip would be seen as a journey to the spirit world, and Wari leaderships’ control over the substance led to control over their followers who wanted it. Researchers argue in their paper, “[T]he vilca-infused brew brought people together in a shared psychotropic experience while ensuring the privileged position of Wari leaders within the social hierarchy as the providers of the hallucinogen.”
Work continues at the dig site at Quilcapampa, and researchers plan to test where the ancient vilca seeds came from – so they can figure out the rest of the ancient trade routes.
A Peruvian elongated skull may show the earliest evidence of an ancient metal implant, or it could be a hoax.
Livescience.com reports that the skull, which was donated to the Museum of Osteology in Oklahoma City, is elongated and pointed, which is not necessarily noteworthy, as ancient Peruvians used to squeeze and shape the heads of infants. But this implant, if genuine, could show advanced surgery using a foreign object.
Beneath the metal, there is a hole in the skull believed to have been made by surgical trepanation, which is the surgical removal of part of the skull to treat an injury. Trepanation in the Andes was widely practiced until the early 16th century. This skull appears to show a piece of metal that was hammered and molded into shape to fill and protect the trepanation hole. And it appears the man survived as there is evidence of bones healing and growing back together. Â
But is it real? The museum of osteology has not yet determined if the metal is genuine or if it was added later. As John Verano, an anthropology professor at Tulane University, told Live Science, “I think this is something fabricated to make the skull a more valuable collectible.”
Verano has studied a number of Andean skulls with metal plates that turned out to be fake, and if this metal plate is a forgery, it could have been added years ago. Â
More testing must be done, but the museum has not yet announced when those tests will take place. If the metal turns out to be genuine, this would be the first of its kind.
The Sphinx Hall of Records: Truth or Tall Tale?
You’ve seen it in the pictures. The Great Sphinx, in Giza, Egypt, is breathtaking all its own, standing about 65 feet high with the Great Pyramid as a backdrop. Tourists from all over the world flock to the site to witness the architectural feat (and of course, pose for pictures next to it). But what if there were more hidden beneath the surface? Some believe there are, in fact, many secrets beneath the Great Sphinx of Giza, namely the Hall of Records, a library full of hidden information. The mystery of the Sphinx begins to unravel with a closer look.
Theories About the Hall of Records
The Hall of Records is said to house piles of documents, scrolls, and other materials with information regarding the lost continent of Atlantis or even extraterrestrials. Some even believe the hall replicates works from the lost Library of Alexandria as well.
Its scholars also attest that the Hall of Records could contain crucial information about the history of Ancient Egypt, too. However, mainstream scholars firmly state there is no such evidence the Hall of Records exists.
To this, believers claim further investigation has been blocked by the Egyptian government and mainstream archaeologists.
It is said the discovery of the Hall of Records would have significant effects on our understanding of world history, specifically the origin of the Ancient Egyptian civilizations. While some write off the study as pseudoarchaeology, others maintain the Hall of Records could indeed be real.
The existence of such an underground library was referenced by Herodotus, who said in Histories’, Book, II, 148:
“This I have actually seen, a work beyond words. For if anyone put together the buildings of the Greeks and display of their labors, they would seem lesser in both effort and expense to this labyrinth … Even the pyramids are beyond words, and each was equal to many and mighty works of the Greeks. Yet the labyrinth surpasses even the pyramids.”
