Monday, March 30, 2009

The Ancient Habits of Musicians

Afarensis reports on the excavation of a 2700-year old tomb in Yanghai, China:

The burial is that of a 45 year old male. The grave goods included bridles, archery equipment, a harp, a leather basket, and a wooden bowl. Both the basket and the bowl were filled with vegetative matter - about 789 grams (~ 1 pound 11 ounces). Radiocarbon dating was performed and a calibrated date of 2,700 years BP was returned. Analysis of the vegetative material indicated it was Cannabis sativa. Furthing testing indicated it was psychoactive.

Yep, a harp and psychoactive vegetative matter. No doubt we will soon see some cultural conservatives rallying around this ancient evidence of the connection between music, dope, and death.  

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The tomb had a make-up bag, too. The dude was a glam harpist.