2,800-year-old tomb in Siberia has evidence of the earliest use of cannabis — possibly as a way to calm human sacrifice victims

Seeds found in an ancient grave and chemical compounds discovered in mummy hair have revealed people got high on marijuana 2,800 years ago.

Archaeologists have unearthed the oldest evidence of cannabis use from a 2,800-year-old monumental tomb in Siberia. The presence of plant seeds in the grave and chemical traces of the drug in mummy hair suggest people practiced a funeral ritual that may have involved a grim practice: calming human sacrifice victims with cannabis.

In a study published Thursday (Nov. 5) in the journal Science, researchers investigated the contents of a "royal mound" burial at the Tunnug archaeological site in the Uyuk valley of southern Siberia. Archaeologists discovered four wooden structures containing several log coffins in the middle of the mound.…