Researchers have identified traces of psychedelic substances, bodily fluids, and alcohol in a 2,000-year-old mug, providing evidence that ancient Egyptians consumed hallucinogenic beverages during rituals, CNN reported.
This marks the first time scientists have detected chemical signatures of the liquid mixtures once consumed from mugs adorned with the image of Bes, an ancient Egyptian deity associated with fertility, protection, healing, and magical purification. Bes-shaped vessels were crafted over an extended period in Egypt, but few have survived, and those that remain have been discovered in varied archaeological contexts, adding to their intrigue.
The findings, published on November 13 in Scientific Reports, stem from an analysis of residue found in a preserved Bes mug displayed at the Tampa Museum of Art.
“For a very long time now, Egyptologists have been speculating what mugs with the head of Bes could have been used for, and for what kind of beverage, like sacred water, milk, wine or beer,” said study coauthor Branko van Oppen, curator of Greek and Roman art at the Tampa Museum of Art, in a statement. “Experts did not know if these mugs were used in daily life, for religious purposes or in magic rituals.”
The research combined chemical and DNA analyses uncovered the first physical evidence of plants with psychotropic and medicinal properties in an Egyptian mug. This discovery supports both written records and myths about ancient Egyptian rituals, according to lead author Davide Tanasi, a professor and director of the Institute for Digital Exploration at the University of South Florida.
“Religion is one of the most fascinating and puzzling aspects of ancient civilizations,” Tanasi said in a statement. “With this study, we’ve found scientific proof that the Egyptian myths have some kind of truth and it helps us shed light on the poorly understood rituals that were likely carried out in the Bes Chambers in Saqqara, near the Great Pyramids at Giza.”
Bes mugs have long puzzled researchers due to the lack of contextual clues about their use, making it difficult to theorize their role in rituals or the substances they contained, Tanasi explained.
“Overall, the Bes vessels were not ordinary artefacts but rather ritual objects that were manufactured in limited numbers and acquired just by those individuals who worshipped Bes and participated in the rituals revolving around him,” Tanasi said. “Very likely, those individuals got to keep the Bes vessels after they were used to perform the rituals, as a reminder that the ritual was actually performed.”
As part of a broader investigation into ancient Mediterranean nutrition, the team analyzed a Bes mug donated to the Tampa Museum of Art in 1984. After scraping the mug’s walls, they pulverized the sample and identified a recipe-like composition based on overlapping residues.
Initially, researchers expected to find traces of a strong alcoholic beverage, given the vessel’s small size- just 1.7 inches (4.5 centimetres) tall and capable of holding 4.2 fluid ounces (125 millilitres). However, the analysis revealed a complex mixture of substances.
The team identified four main categories of ingredients: an alcoholic base, flavouring agents, human bodily fluids, and medicinal or psychotropic components.
The presence of fermentation yeasts indicated that the base was likely beer or wine, flavoured with honey, royal jelly, sesame seeds, pine nuts, liquorice, and grapes. Grapes were commonly used by ancient Egyptians to give beverages a blood-like appearance, the study noted.
The bodily fluids, potentially a combination of blood, breast milk, and mucus (from nasal, vaginal, or salivary sources), appeared to have been deliberately added based on their concentrations.
Among the plants detected were Egyptian blue water lily and Syrian rue, both known for their hallucinogenic, medicinal, intoxicating, and sedative properties, which could alter perception and enhance visionary experiences. The Cleome plant, also found in the residue, is known for its medicinal uses, including labour induction or, in high doses, causing abortion.
“This research teaches us about magic rituals in the Greco-Roman period in Egypt,” van Oppen said. “Egyptologists believe that people visited the so-called Bes Chambers at Saqqara when they wished to confirm a successful pregnancy because pregnancies in the ancient world were fraught with dangers. So, this combination of ingredients may have been used in a dream-vision-inducing magic ritual within the context of this dangerous period of childbirth.”
According to records, Egyptians were familiar with the plants and the side effects of consuming them.
“We were surprised by the complex recipe of the concoction and shocked by the discovery (of) the human fluids that added a new religious/magical angle,” Tanasi said. “The identified substances would likely have induced dream-like visions, heightened meditative states and possibly euphoria.”