Did ancient Greek priestesses brew a mind-bending potion drunk by Cicero and Marcus Aurelius?: Researchers found the psychedelic elixir would have been possible to make using ingredients and techniques available in ancient Greece.

The article focuses on recent research investigating the composition of the kykeon, a brew consumed during the ancient Eleusinian Mysteries near Athens, Greece. Researchers demonstrated that Eleusinian priestesses could have safely prepared a psychedelic potion using ergot, a parasitic fungus on barley, combined with alkaline lye made from wood ash, replicating conditions available in ancient Greece. This preparation would isolate lysergic acid amides, compounds pharmacologically related to LSD, potentially explaining the visionary experiences described by initiates. While the study establishes the chemical plausibility of such a brew, scholars caution that this does not constitute definitive historical proof that it was actually used. Further archaeological analysis is planned to seek direct evidence of the fungus at Eleusis. [Extracted from the article]