ancientegypt

13d

Analysis of Egyptian alabaster vessel reveals widespread opium use from Xerxes to King Tut

A new analysis of an inscribed alabaster vase from the Yale Babylonian Collection has produced the strongest scientific evidence to date that opium played a wider role in ancient Egyptian life than was previously known...

More information: https://archaeologymag.com/2025/11/egyptian-vessel-analysis-reveals-opium-use/

#archaeology #archeology #archaeologynews #xerxes #achaemenidempire #ancientegypt

Analysis of Egyptian alabaster vessel reveals widespread opium use from Xerxes to King Tut

A new analysis of an inscribed alabaster vase from the Yale Babylonian Collection has produced the strongest scientific evidence to date that opium played a wider role in ancient Egyptian life than was previously known. The study found multiple chemical markers of opiates inside the 2,500-year-old vessel, marking the first time the contents of an inscribed Egyptian alabastron have been scientifically confirmed.

One of the few examples to survive intact, the vase was carved from calcite and dedicated to Xerxes I in four ancient languages. Its interior still retains dark, aromatic residues that YAPP researchers sampled using non-destructive methods developed over years of studying organic traces in archaeological collections...

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185d

Distributed Proofreaders goes to Egypt - via London - with E.A. Wallis Budge's 1909 Guide to the Egyptian Collections at the British Museum https://blog.pgdp.net/2025/06/01/egypt-in-london/ #ebooks #AncientEgypt #BritishMuseum

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