Cannabis in Ancient Cultures: Egypt, Greece, China, and Babylon
Quick Summary
Cannabis accompanied humanity's earliest civilizations. Chinese farmers cultivated it 12,000 years ago in the Altai Mountains, creating pottery with hemp fiber imprints by 5000 BCE. Egyptian physicians recorded cannabis treatments in the Ebers Papyrus around 1500 BCE for inflammation and glaucoma, with cannabis found in Ramesses II's tomb. Greek physicians used it for horses and wound care. Assyrian and Babylonian tablets describe azallû (cannabis) for depression and anxiety. From ceremonial Scythian rituals to Chinese medical texts, cannabis wove itself into ancient life as medicine, spiritual tool, and essential crop.
China: The Longest Relationship
When we trace cannabis history, all roads lead to ancient China. Archaeological evidence suggests Chinese cultivation may extend back 12,000 years.
The Altai Mountains Discovery
In the Altai Mountains region of northwestern China, archaeologists made remarkable discoveries. Seeds and fiber fragments suggest cannabis cultivation dating to approximately 10,000 BCE.
This wasn't wild cannabis. The plant characteristics indicate deliberate cultivation. Ancient peoples selected plants with desirable traits, planting seeds season after season.
Why did they value cannabis so highly? The answer lies in its remarkable versatility.
Hemp Fiber: Clothing Ancient China
By 5000 BCE, Chinese potters were creating ceramics decorated with hemp cord impressions. These pottery fragments tell us hemp fiber was already important for cordage and textiles.
Hemp fiber offered ancient Chinese people critical advantages:
Durability: Hemp textiles lasted far longer than other available fibers. Clothing needed to withstand hard use in agricultural societies.
Strength: Hemp rope supported construction projects, secured loads, and served countless daily functions.
Climate Suitability: Hemp grew well in regions where other fiber crops struggled.
Archaeological sites across ancient China reveal extensive hemp use. Tomb excavations uncover hemp fabric clothing, suggesting it clothed people from peasants to nobility.
Emperor Shen Nung: The Divine Farmer
Chinese tradition credits Emperor Shen Nung, the "Divine Farmer," with documenting cannabis around 2737 BCE. While Shen Nung may be more legend than historical figure, the texts attributed to him reflect genuine ancient knowledge.
The Shen Nung Ben Cao Jing (Divine Farmer's Herb-Root Classic) represents one of the oldest Chinese medical texts. It describes hundreds of medicinal plants, including cannabis.
The text distinguishes between male and female cannabis plants, noting different properties. It describes cannabis (called "ma" in Chinese) as useful for:
- Rheumatic pain
- Digestive issues
- Malaria
- "Female disorders" (likely menstrual issues)
- Mental conditions
Importantly, the text warns against excessive use, noting it could cause hallucinations. Ancient Chinese physicians understood cannabis required proper dosing.
Cannabis in Chinese Medicine and Ritual
As Chinese medicine developed over millennia, cannabis maintained its place in the pharmacopeia.
Hua Tuo's Anesthesia: The legendary physician Hua Tuo (140-208 CE) reportedly created an anesthetic called "mafeisan" (cannabis boiling powder). Historical texts describe him performing surgery on patients sedated with this cannabis preparation. While details are debated, the accounts suggest sophisticated medical cannabis use.
Pain Management: Chinese physicians prescribed cannabis for various pain conditions. Texts describe it for joint pain, injuries, and chronic conditions.
Ritual Use: Beyond medicine, cannabis played roles in religious and spiritual practices. Taoist texts reference cannabis. Shamanic traditions may have incorporated it.
Agricultural Importance: Cannabis cultivation spread throughout ancient China. Farmers grew it for fiber, seed (for food and oil), and medicine. It was an essential crop, not a luxury.
The Long View
Chinese cannabis use spans at least 7,000 documented years, possibly 12,000. No other civilization has such an extensive history.
This long relationship allowed Chinese culture to develop sophisticated knowledge. They understood cultivation techniques, processing methods, medical applications, and appropriate dosing.
This knowledge spread along trade routes, influencing other Asian cultures and eventually reaching the West.
Egypt: Medicine of the Pharaohs
Ancient Egypt's cannabis history is documented in both medical texts and archaeological discoveries. The evidence reveals sophisticated medical understanding.
The Ebers Papyrus: Ancient Prescriptions
The Ebers Papyrus, dated to approximately 1500 BCE, ranks among the most important ancient medical texts. This 20-meter-long papyrus scroll contains over 700 remedies.
Multiple entries mention cannabis (referred to as "shemshemet" or similar terms):
Anti-inflammatory Applications: The papyrus describes cannabis for reducing inflammation. Preparations were applied to sore muscles, inflamed wounds, and painful joints.
Glaucoma Treatment: One of the most intriguing entries suggests cannabis for eye conditions, possibly including glaucoma. This is remarkable because modern research confirms cannabis reduces intraocular pressure in glaucoma.
Suppository Preparations: The text describes cannabis suppositories, suggesting Egyptian physicians understood different delivery methods provided different benefits.
Topical Applications: Many remedies involve grinding cannabis with other ingredients and applying the mixture to affected areas.
The specificity of these prescriptions indicates extensive experience. Ancient Egyptian physicians didn't guess about cannabis; they'd observed its effects across generations.
Other Medical Papyri
Cannabis appears in other ancient Egyptian medical texts:
Berlin Papyrus: Contains additional cannabis remedies for various conditions.
Ramesseum III Papyrus: Describes cannabis in pharmaceutical preparations.
These texts confirm cannabis wasn't an obscure remedy. It was standard medicine, familiar to Egyptian physicians.
Ramesses II: Cannabis in the Royal Tomb
Archaeological evidence powerfully confirms textual records. When researchers examined the mummy of Ramesses II (who died around 1213 BCE), they found traces of cannabis.
This discovery tells us several important things:
Elite Access: Pharaohs could access the finest medicines. Finding cannabis with Ramesses II suggests it was valued, not just common.
Medicinal Use: The context suggests medical rather than recreational use. Ancient Egyptian burial practices included items for the afterlife. Medicine for the king's journey indicates its importance.
Preservation Intent: Someone considered cannabis important enough to include in royal burial preparations.
How Egyptians Used Cannabis
Based on textual and archaeological evidence, ancient Egyptians used cannabis in several ways:
Topical Preparations: Ground cannabis mixed with fats, oils, or honey, applied to skin for inflammation and pain.
Oral Consumption: Cannabis mixed with foods or drinks for internal conditions.
Suppositories: For digestive, urological, or gynecological issues.
Fumigation: Burning cannabis and inhaling smoke may have occurred, though direct evidence is limited.
Poultices: Cannabis-containing wraps applied to injuries or painful areas.
Egyptian Medical Philosophy
Ancient Egyptian medicine combined empirical observation with spiritual beliefs. Physicians understood that certain plants helped specific conditions, even if their explanatory frameworks differed from modern science.
Cannabis fit naturally into this system. It clearly provided relief for various ailments. Egyptian physicians documented what worked, refined preparations, and passed knowledge through generations.
Greece: Medicine and Horses
Ancient Greek civilization left extensive written records. These texts provide glimpses of cannabis use in classical antiquity.
Herodotus and the Scythians
The Greek historian Herodotus (484-425 BCE) provides one of the most detailed ancient descriptions of cannabis use. Writing about the Scythian people (nomadic tribes north of Greece), Herodotus described their funeral rituals:
After important deaths, Scythians would construct small tent-like structures. Inside, they'd place a brazier with hot stones. They'd throw cannabis seeds on these stones, creating thick smoke.
Herodotus writes that the Scythians "howled with pleasure" from the vapor. This is often cited as evidence of recreational cannabis use, though it may have been ceremonial or spiritual rather than merely recreational.
Importantly, Herodotus describes this as a foreign practice. He's explaining exotic customs to Greek readers, suggesting cannabis use wasn't common in Greece itself during this period.
Greek Medical Use
While recreational use may have been foreign to Greeks, medicinal applications weren't unknown.
Veterinary Medicine: Greek texts describe using cannabis for horses. Applications included treating sores, wounds, and inflammation. Hemp seed was also used as horse feed.
Human Wound Care: Some Greek medical texts mention cannabis for treating wounds and reducing inflammation.
Dioscorides' De Materia Medica: This influential medical text from the 1st century CE (Greco-Roman period) describes cannabis. Pedanius Dioscorides, a Greek physician serving in the Roman army, documented cannabis for:
- Earache
- Inflammation
- Pain
- Suppressing sexual desire (whether this is accurate or reflects cultural attitudes is unclear)
Limited Role in Greek Culture
Compared to Chinese or Egyptian medicine, cannabis played a smaller role in ancient Greek therapeutics.
Several factors might explain this:
Geographic: Cannabis may have been less available in Greek territories than in Egypt or Asia.
Cultural: Greeks had access to other medicinal plants and may have preferred alternatives.
Medical Philosophy: Greek medicine developed distinct theoretical frameworks that emphasized other approaches.
Written Record Bias: Greek texts that survived may not represent all ancient practices.
Despite the limited role, Greek physicians clearly knew about cannabis and used it in specific situations.
Mesopotamia and Babylon: Azallû for Depression
The ancient civilizations between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers--Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians--left extensive written records on clay tablets. These tablets reveal sophisticated medicine, including cannabis use.
Assyrian Medical Tablets
Assyrian medical texts, dating from roughly 1000-600 BCE, reference a plant called "azallû." Researchers have identified this with cannabis based on linguistic analysis and described uses.
These tablets describe azallû for:
Depression: This is particularly interesting. Ancient Assyrian physicians recognized mental conditions and prescribed cannabis for what they termed "heavy heart" or similar concepts corresponding to depression.
Anxiety: Related to depression treatment, cannabis was prescribed for nervous conditions.
Digestive Issues: Tablets describe azallû for stomach complaints.
General Malaise: Various non-specific symptoms that might correspond to what we'd call chronic fatigue or general unwellness.
Preparation Methods
Assyrian tablets sometimes specify preparation methods:
- Ground seeds mixed with other ingredients
- Preparations in beer or wine
- Applications in oil or fat bases for topical use
- Burning as incense (possibly for respiratory conditions or ceremonial use)
The specificity suggests experiential knowledge. These weren't guesses; they were refined recipes.
Babylonian Continuity
Later Babylonian texts continued referencing azallû/cannabis. As empires rose and fell in Mesopotamia, medical knowledge passed from culture to culture.
The Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II's era (605-562 BCE) saw sophisticated medicine incorporating various plant-based treatments, likely including cannabis.
Significance for Mental Health
The Assyrian use of cannabis for depression is particularly noteworthy from a modern perspective. Contemporary research investigates cannabinoids for mood disorders.
Ancient Assyrian physicians, through observation, identified an application that modern science is now exploring with sophisticated tools. This doesn't validate all ancient practices, but it suggests careful observation across generations could identify real effects.
Cross-Cultural Patterns: What Ancient Use Teaches Us
Examining cannabis use across ancient civilizations reveals common patterns:
Pain and Inflammation
Every ancient culture--Chinese, Egyptian, Greek, Mesopotamian--used cannabis for pain and inflammation. This consistency across independent medical traditions suggests observable benefits.
Ancient peoples couldn't measure inflammatory markers or conduct placebo-controlled trials. But they could observe that cannabis preparations reduced swelling and eased pain. This empirical knowledge proved reliable enough to persist for thousands of years.
Topical and Internal Use
Multiple cultures discovered both topical and internal applications. Ancient physicians understood delivery methods mattered.
For localized pain or skin conditions, topical preparations made sense. For systemic conditions, oral consumption or suppositories were appropriate. This nuanced understanding developed through extensive experience.
Medical, Not Recreational
The dominant pattern across ancient cultures is medical use. While Scythian ceremonial use described by Herodotus might have been pleasurable, most ancient texts present cannabis as medicine.
This challenges modern assumptions. We often think of cannabis primarily as a recreational substance. Ancient cultures viewed it primarily as medicine (and industrial crop).
Integration into Medical Systems
Cannabis wasn't alternative medicine in ancient cultures. It was mainstream medicine, integrated into sophisticated medical systems alongside other plants, minerals, and animal-derived substances.
Egyptian, Chinese, and Mesopotamian physicians studied for years, learning complex medical theories and extensive pharmacopeias. Cannabis was one tool among many, prescribed when appropriate for specific conditions.
Archaeological Evidence Beyond Texts
Written texts provide crucial evidence, but archaeology offers additional confirmation.
Burial Sites
Cannabis has been found in numerous ancient burials:
Chinese Tombs: Hemp fabric clothing and cannabis seeds appear in tombs dating back thousands of years.
Yanghai Tombs: In 2008, researchers announced discovery of 789 grams of cannabis in a 2,700-year-old tomb in western China. Analysis showed it was cultivated cannabis with psychoactive properties, possibly for shamanic rituals.
Egyptian Mummies: Beyond Ramesses II, traces of cannabis have been identified in other Egyptian mummies.
Scythian Burials: Archaeological evidence confirms Herodotus's account. Scythian tombs contain bronze braziers and cannabis seeds, supporting his description of funeral rituals.
Ancient Trade Routes
Archaeological evidence shows cannabis spread along ancient trade routes. The plant moved from Central Asia across the ancient world, following paths merchants traveled.
This diffusion occurred over thousands of years. As people traded goods, they also exchanged knowledge, including medical and agricultural information about cannabis.
Tools and Equipment
Excavations uncover tools for processing hemp fiber, demonstrating industrial use. Stone and bronze tools for breaking hemp stems, extracting fiber, and spinning thread appear across archaeological sites.
This industrial infrastructure required significant investment. Communities built economies partially around hemp production.
Spiritual and Ceremonial Dimensions
Beyond medicine and industry, cannabis held spiritual significance in some ancient cultures.
Scythian Rituals
Herodotus's account describes what appears to be ceremonial cannabis use. The funeral ritual created altered states that may have held spiritual meaning.
For Scythians, this wasn't casual recreation. It was a solemn ritual connecting the living to the dead, possibly facilitating communication with spiritual realms.
Chinese Shamanism
Some scholars argue cannabis played roles in ancient Chinese shamanic practices. Early Taoist texts contain possible references to cannabis-induced states.
The evidence is less clear than for medical use, but China's long cannabis history likely included spiritual applications alongside medical and industrial ones.
Hindu Traditions
While not covered in detail here (as the focus is on ancient civilizations), it's worth noting that cannabis became integrated into Hindu spiritual practices, particularly associated with Shiva. This tradition likely has ancient roots, though documentation comes from later periods.
What Ancient Use Tells Modern Science
Ancient cannabis use isn't just historical curiosity. It informs modern research in important ways.
Hypothesis Generation
When independent cultures across thousands of years use cannabis for similar conditions, it suggests potential therapeutic value worth investigating scientifically.
Modern researchers study cannabinoids for pain, inflammation, digestive issues, glaucoma, and mental conditions--applications ancient cultures discovered empirically.
Delivery Methods
Ancient physicians understood different delivery methods produced different effects. This knowledge, refined over generations, can inform modern formulation development.
Topical, oral, sublingual, and suppository applications all have modern equivalents in cannabis medicine.
Dosing Wisdom
Ancient texts warning against excessive use show these cultures understood dosing mattered. They knew cannabis could be beneficial or problematic depending on amount and context.
Modern medicine is relearning this nuance. The "start low, go slow" approach to medical cannabis echoes ancient wisdom.
Long-term Observation
Ancient cultures observed cannabis effects across multiple generations. While they lacked modern scientific methods, this extensive observation period identified patterns.
Modern research, by comparison, often involves relatively short studies. Ancient experience, though not scientifically rigorous, provides a different type of evidence: long-term, broad observation across diverse populations.
Limitations of Ancient Knowledge
While ancient cannabis use is fascinating, we must recognize limitations:
Lack of Controlled Study
Ancient physicians couldn't conduct placebo-controlled trials. They couldn't isolate variables or measure outcomes objectively.
Some effects they attributed to cannabis might have resulted from other ingredients in preparations, natural disease course, or placebo effects.
Different Plant Varieties
Ancient cannabis likely differed from modern strains. Cannabinoid content, ratios, and other characteristics may have varied significantly.
We can't assume ancient remedies translate directly to modern products.
Cultural and Theoretical Frameworks
Ancient medical theories differed from modern understanding. They might describe accurate observations using frameworks we now know are incorrect.
For example, ancient texts might describe cannabis treating "imbalance of humors" (a theory modern medicine rejects) while actually observing real anti-inflammatory effects.
Incomplete Records
Most ancient knowledge was lost. We have fragments--texts that survived, archaeological finds that were preserved. Vast knowledge disappeared.
We shouldn't assume our limited surviving evidence represents the full scope of ancient cannabis knowledge.
Timeline: Cannabis in Ancient Civilizations
10,000 BCE: Earliest evidence of cannabis cultivation, Altai Mountains region (China)
5000 BCE: Hemp cord impressions appear on Chinese pottery, showing established fiber use
2737 BCE: Traditional date for Emperor Shen Nung's pharmacopeia documenting cannabis (China)
2000-1500 BCE: Widespread hemp cultivation across China; sophisticated agricultural practices
1500 BCE: Ebers Papyrus documents cannabis medical uses (Egypt)
1213 BCE: Death of Ramesses II, whose mummy contains cannabis traces (Egypt)
1000-600 BCE: Assyrian medical tablets describe azallû/cannabis for depression and anxiety (Mesopotamia)
500 BCE: Scythian cannabis rituals documented by Herodotus (Greece/Scythia)
100-200 CE: Hua Tuo reportedly uses cannabis anesthetic for surgery (China)
70 CE: Dioscorides includes cannabis in De Materia Medica (Greco-Roman)
100-300 CE: Cannabis spread along Silk Road reaches India, Middle East, Africa
Lessons From the Ancients
What can ancient cannabis use teach us?
Empirical Knowledge Has Value: Ancient cultures lacked scientific methods but accumulated genuine knowledge through careful observation across generations.
Multiple Applications: Cannabis served diverse needs--medicine, fiber, food, ritual. This versatility explains its persistence across cultures and millennia.
Context Matters: Ancient cultures used cannabis within sophisticated frameworks of medicine, agriculture, and spirituality. They didn't view it simplistically.
Long History of Safe Use: Thousands of years of documented use across multiple cultures suggests cannabis can be used relatively safely with proper knowledge and respect.
Lost Knowledge Can Be Recovered: Modern research is rediscovering applications ancient physicians knew. We're not innovating so much as remembering.
Cultural Differences Are Important: Different cultures used cannabis differently based on needs, available knowledge, and cultural values. There's no single "traditional" use.
Connecting Ancient and Modern
As modern cannabis policy and research evolve, connecting with ancient history provides valuable perspective.
Ancient peoples weren't primitive or naive. Egyptian physicians, Chinese agriculturalists, and Mesopotamian healers developed sophisticated civilizations. Their medical systems treated countless patients across centuries.
Cannabis wasn't a fringe element of these cultures. It was woven into daily life as medicine, material, and sometimes sacrament.
Prohibition disconnected modern Western culture from this heritage. For roughly 80 years, we lost touch with thousands of years of accumulated knowledge.
Legalization and research represent reconnection. We're rebuilding relationships with cannabis using both ancient wisdom and modern science.
The ancient world has much to teach us, if we're willing to listen.
Keep Learning
Interested in exploring more about cannabis history and culture? Check out these related articles:
- Cannabis History: From Ancient Textiles to Modern Medicine - Discover 12,000 years of hemp's role in civilization
- Cannabis Science Progress in 2025 - Learn how modern research builds on ancient medical knowledge
- Modern Cannabis Usage and 420 Culture - Understand how ancient medicinal use evolved into contemporary culture
- CBD Oil for Pain: What Science Says - See how modern research validates ancient pain treatments
Sources and Further Reading
- Wikipedia: "History of cannabis" and "Medical cannabis" - Comprehensive overviews with extensive archaeological and textual citations
- PMC (PubMed Central): "History of cannabis and its preparations in saga, science, and sobriquet" - Peer-reviewed historical research covering ancient medical applications
- Ancient Origins: "Herodotus' Scythians, Cannabis and Funeral Rituals" - Archaeological and historical analysis of ancient ceremonial use
- MedWell Health: "The Use of Cannabis in Ancient Civilizations" - Medical perspective on historical therapeutic applications
- High Times: "Cannabis in Ancient Civilizations" - Cultural history covering Egypt, China, Greece, and Mesopotamia
- University of Pennsylvania Museum: Archaeological reports on cannabis finds in ancient tombs and settlement sites
Last Updated: January 2025