Variety of intoxicants and hallucinogens were an integral part of culture and ritual for the Philistines, as well as other peoples in the area.

ed note–for obvious reasons, anything coming out of any ‘archaeological’ society associated with the Jewish state needs to be tempered with a great deal of skepticism, since as of late it seems every other day one of these groups ‘discovers’ something that carries a very strong political message that supports the Jews’ claim to Palestine.

However, the notion that hallucinogens were a part of the day-to-day business in that part of the world is not a theory and goes a long way towards explaining much of the lore making up the Jewish narrative, beginning with Abraham hearing voices in his head telling him first that he and his family were ‘first’ in Yahweh’s affection, and then later, voices in his head telling him to murder his own son and burn his body. Indeed, the mental illness that has obviously afflicted these people over the milleniae, the complete absence of reason or rationality in the various positions they take as well as their well-documented leading role in the trafficking in mind-altering substances from alcohol to Ecstacy to marijuana, cocaine, heroin, etc is more than slightly coincidental to certain findings described in this piece from Haaretz.

Haaretz

Before the central Israeli town of Yavneh became a residence for police officers and IDF officers, it featured a varied drug scene, including many different kinds of intoxicants and hallucinogens. Long before. These substances were used 3,000 years ago, during the Iron Age, and were an integral part of culture and ritual for the Philistines, a people that lived in central and southern Canaan, as well as other peoples in the area.

The use of mind-altering plants and potions as well as hallucinogens was very common in ancient cultures. The common presumption is that they served as an important part of mystic and spiritual rituals, and gave users intense, ecstatic experiences. Also, the substances are believed to have been used as anaesthetics for religious rituals that involved physical pain.

Lab technologies that have been developed over the years, and currently being utilized by archaeologists, have made it possible to find traces of these materials after thousands of years, and recreate them. Analysis of findings from a decade ago in Yavneh is an example of the use of this new technology. The findings represent the oldest evidence of the use of plants from the Hyoscyamus family as intoxicants. Research on the plants will be presented during an exhibition at Hebrew University, in coordination with the Israel Antiquities Authority. The exhibition, “Sex, Drugs and Rock ‘n’ Roll,” will examine the three subjects from an archaeological perspective.

The Philistine incineration pit in Yavneh was discovered by accident, a few hundred meters from the Tel Yavneh archaeological site in the southern part of the city, during construction of a public park. In 2002, the pit was properly excavated by the Israel Antiquities Authority, and archaeologist Dr. Raz Kletter, who then worked for the authority and is currently a professor at the University of Helsinki, along with a professor from the University of Mainz, and Dr. Irit Tziffer from the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv.

In the pit, which was excavated to a depth of two meters, researchers found thousands of clay pieces that were used for rituals. They also found other ritual objects, including small altars of stone and clay, as well as bowls and other vessels. According to the researchers, some of the tools and objects found were used with the intoxicants and hallucinogens. Kletter and his associates initially thought that the pit was connected to the religious site at Tel Yavneh (many findings from which were published in the book “Yavneh 1” in 2010).

An ancient altar with female figures from Yavneh. Photo by Raz Kletter

The wide array of ritual objects found in the pit were given to Dr. Devori Mandar and Dr. Alon Amrani from the Earth Science institute at Hebrew University, who analyzed the findings, revealing new trace elements of the intoxicants used during the ritual ceremonies. “The assumption is that the ritual ceremonies included much use of the mind-altering plants,” explains Namdar, adding that “the biggest problem is that botanic material like flowers and plants do not survive so many years. In order to identify them we look for the molecules in the pores of the clay vessels, where some of them might survive. By dissolving the organic materials we manage to isolate the specific molecules, and can classify them.”

Using this method, the researchers identified molecules from plants belonging to the Hyoscyamus, a common plant in the area, known for its intoxicating qualities, which Namdar claims is still used by many Bedouin for its intoxicating affects. “It’s an old plant, and it has been documented in literature that Bedouin often chew it, to this day,” she says. When it comes to hallucinogens, according to Namdar, identifying traces of them is more difficult. “In some objects, the material was too deteriorated to identify, as it had apparently been heated. We presume that they included nutmeg, which is known as a hallucinogen, and used today to produce Ecstacy,” Namdar says.

According to Namdar, the field of “sensory archaeology” is just getting started, and there is a lack of information about it. At the same time, she says confidently that aside from intoxicating plants and nutmeg, the ancient rituals utilized a wide array of drugs. “We need more information,” she says. “The closer we get to findings, the more we compare them to other cultures that existed in the area, the more questions we can answer, for example – what kind of drugs did they get from across the sea, and what was made locally? In this case it was the Philistines, but there were neighboring cultures that used similar materials and objects.

“We’re checking more and more objects from the ancient periods and cultures that lived in this area to learn more about the religious rituals and the substances they used,” she explains.

Lest We Forget–Israelis at center of ecstasy drug trade

In recent years, organized crime in Israel, some with links to criminal organizations in Russia, have come to control the distribution of the drug in Europe, according to a Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs document.

Haaretz

Israel is at the center of international trade in the drug ecstasy, according to a document published last week by the U.S. State Department.

In recent years, organized crime in Israel, some with links to criminal organizations in Russia, have come to control the distribution of the drug in Europe, according to a Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs document.

The same document also points out that Israeli criminal groups have a hand in the distribution of ecstasy in North America.

During 2000, 80 percent of the ecstasy seized in North America originated in the Netherlands, which is the largest production center, along with Belgium and Poland. The State Department is certain that Israeli organizations are linked to the laboratories in the Netherlands and are responsible for the worldwide distribution.

“Israeli drug distribution organizations are currently the main source for distribution of the drug to groups inside the U.S., to smuggling through express mail services, through couriers on commercial flights and, recently, through air cargo,” states the report. In the past two years, the U.S. has dealt more severely with ecstasy. Federal judges deal with smugglers in the ecstasy trade with the same severity as heroin and cocaine dealers.