Cocaine in mummified brains reveals when Europeans first used the drug

The use of cocaine only took off in Europe during the 19th century, after the drug was chemically isolated from coca leaves, but new evidence suggests much earlier use

By: New Scientist

Sep 03 2024
7
273 Views

Cocaine in mummified brains reveals when Europeans first used the drug

Coca leaves have psychoactive and therapeutic properties
Fabiano Sodi/Alamy
The mummified brain tissue of two people found in a 17th-century crypt in Milan, Italy, contains traces of cocaine, revea… [+409 chars]