did the ancients smoke?

Question

in the bbc production Rome queen cleopatra is seen enjoying an opium pipe. i know opium and cannabis were common in ancient times but did they smoke it . i always thought smoking was introduced from the new world

its common knowledge these days that ancients consumed a variety of drugs the question was did they SMOKE them

Answer 1

Having spent a lifetime studying history it is my understanding that smoking was a New World habit that was introduced into the Old World.

Although it is quite certain that drugs such as opium and cannabis were used from ancient times, they were almost certainly used medicinally, and were ingested by chewing or eating. The Arabs used "kif" a form of cannabis as a relaxant
The Chinese discovered the analgesic properties of opium.

As far as the BBC claiming that Cleopatra smoked, I have to say that the BBC is not the most reliable source of facts these days (in the past it had a reputation for honesty but that seems to have gone by the board when even their news broadcasts seem more opinion-based than factual.)

I have never seen anything that suggests smoking any type of drug was done prior to European contact with America. Also, it appears that native Americans smoked tobacco by inhaling the smoke from the burning tobacco through the nose, not through the mouth.

Answer 2

Yes. Tests on the hair of ancient Egyptian mummies have been found to have traces of cannabis and other substances present. Modern day techniques can tell when a person has indulged and depending on the length of the hair whether they used substances regularly and when, ie if they had a few months not using and then started again. It does not matter how often the hair is washed or how many years have passed the hair keeps a 'history' of use. It is a totally fascinating subject especially with modern day technology.

PS Sorry got quite carried away last night, I read somewhere that they did also smoke the substances but after searching everywhere I cannot find where I saw this info. If I am wrong I stand corrected.

Answer 3

The comment that Maddy made seems pretty accurate. i think that you should take into consideration that before governments began labelling drugs as drugs they would have grown wild and and would have been used for medicinal purposes. Cannabis can definitely be used for pain relief, thats a fact. Saying that, there was obviously some sneaky Eygptian stoner who was cultivating the plant for personal use!! haha

I'm really not sure if the Egyptians did smoke though, not because they couldn't have had the idea but more that they would decide against it and side with health. sorry I'm writing an essay but the BBC probably had Cleo smoking opium because they wanted to her to ooze sex like a porn star or something, when in truth she would have brown cracked-crackhead teeth and constipation. ok there you go. did i help? i dunno, lets just hope u laughed at least once (slyly, cause thats the best!)

it's been fun. See ya.

Answer 4

Absolutely - they certainly smoked such things as opium. If you look at the few traditional tribes that exist today, many have customs of sharing a pipe - with a variety of different contents depending on the area. A few years ago a mummy from Egypt was found to have cocaine in it's system - which is still baffling the experts as cocaine is a South American plant!

Answer 5

Tobacco was introduced from the New World. Plenty of other drugs were available in ancient Europe.

Answer 6

That's a good question. We usually think of tobacco when we say to smoke

Answer 7

It was customary in Ancient Greece. when somebody died. for their family. to close the house and extinguish all fires. for 3 days. Afterwards. they threw a hemp bush onto thr embers, the smoke produced was inhalated directly, no pipes involved. Hemp in classical greek was called "νιπενθές" meaning "no sorrow".

Answer 8

One of the common forms of drug use was not smoking it but SNORTING it, like snuff. Pipes were definitely used as well as communal pots ("bongs") but smoking it in the sense we think of today (rolled in paper or biological material such as a leaf) were not used.

Answer 9

yes they smoked but they used grasses etc in which is not bad for your health not tobacco it was sir walter raliegh giving the tobacco to elizabeth the first if he didnt discover it we wouldnt be idiots now for smoking it.

Answer 10

tobacco was introduced from the new world..... and originally tobacco wasn't smoked but chewed