Cannabis in the Ancient Greek and Roman World

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Did the ancient Greeks and Romans use psychoactive cannabis Scholars say that hemp was commonplace in the ancient world, but there is no consensus on cannabis usage. According to botany, hemp and cannabis are the same plant and thus the ancient Greeks and Romans must have used it in their daily lives. Cultures parallel to the ancient Greeks and Romans, like the Egyptians, Scythians, and Hittites, were known to use cannabis in their medicine, religion and recreational practices.

Cannabis in the Ancient Greek and Roman World surveys the primary references to cannabis in ancient Greek and Roman texts and covers emerging scholarship about the plant in the ancient world. Ancient Greek and Latin medical texts from the Roman Empire contain the most mentions of the plant, where it served as an effective ingredient in ancient pharmacy. Cannabis in the Ancient Greek and Roman World focuses on the ancient rationale behind cannabis and how they understood the plants properties and effects, as well as its different applications.

For the first time ever, this book provides a sourcebook with the original ancient Greek and Latin, along with translations, of all references to psychoactive cannabis in the Greek and Roman world. It covers the archaeology of cannabis in the ancient world, including amazing discoveries from Scythian burial sites, ancient proto-Zoroastrian fire temples, Bronze Age Chinese burial sites, as well as evidence in Greece and Rome. Beyond cannabis, Cannabis in the Ancient Greek and Roman World also explores ancient views on medicine, pharmacy, and intoxication.

Reviews

Sumler, a University of Colorado lecturer, goes well beyond Greece and Rome, where cannabis use was actually limited. His book covers many views on cannabis (Cannabis sativa) and its use all over the ancient world. He has in-depth discussion on how it was shared between different cultures. What results is quite a variety of interesting comparisons covering practical cures for physical problems like pain along with more mystical uses. I have to admit a few of these are an herbal stretch for me, like a theory that references to gentle, demulcent marshmallow (Althea officinalis) rootused in cough syrupmight refer to cannabis. However, this is an example of what makes this such a thought-provoking and interesting book.

* American Herb Association Quarterly Newsletter *
This book by a scholar knowledgeable of the languages of the original sources addresses a subject of great contemporary interest in the context of the present political debate about the legalization of cannabis, both for medicinal purposes and as a recreational intoxicant, presenting the evidence as a careful compilation of citations without polemical advocacy. -- Carl A. P. Ruck, Boston University
Alan Sumler has written the most comprehensive review to date of the uses of cannabis in the Greek and Latin classical and medieval literature. As a longstanding student of this history, I was surprised by the number and breadth of his sources. The text is well researched and documented with extensive references. Anyone with an interest in the history of cannabis and medicinal plants will find the book fascinating. -- Ethan Russo M.D., International Cannabis and Cannabinoids Institute
Given the enormous debates swirling around the legalization of cannabis today, knowledge of its history has become all the more important. The role of cannabis in classical Greece and Rome has remained almost invisible to us. Far more than ubiquitous hemp, cannabis was also valued for its psychoactive properties. This volume draws on a wide variety of sources to chart in rich and meticulous detail the medicinal, religious, and recreational uses found in a variety of cultures in the Classical world. From the Neolithic to the Silk Road to imperial Rome, doctors, priests, shamans, merchants, soothsayers, poets, and others used, studied, and wrote about cannabis. The book will prove to be useful not just for those interested in the history and ethnobotany of cannabis and pharmacology, but also in the Classical world more generally. -- Barney Warf, University of Kansas

Author Bio

Alan G. Sumler is lecturer at the University of Colorado at Denver.