What psychedelics did Vikings use?
Sources appear to agree that Viking warriors probably ingested one of two mushroom species: Amanita muscaria (fly agaric) or Amanita pantherina (panther cap). In both cases, the primary psychoactive ingredient is muscimol. both contain the psychoactive compound muscimol (right).
What was the drink of choice for Vikings?
mead
The Vikings drank strong beer at festive occasions, together with the popular drink of mead. Mead was a sweet, fermented drink made from honey, water and spices. Wine made from grapes was also known of, but had to be imported, from France, for example.
Did Viking berserkers use drugs?
Viking berserker was one of the most elite Viking warriors. The most famous kind of drugs in the Viking Age could have been the Amanita muscaria, a kind of hallucination mushroom. This kind of mushroom was known as the fly agaric which originally grew in the Northern Hemisphere and later spread.
Did Vikings smoke?
They are particularly well known for their use of the peace pipe, smoked before making treaties to ensure peaceful thoughts and long-lasting bonds between people. The Vikings throughout Scandinavia used pipes and the herb angelikarot was commonly smoked in Norway.
What kind of hallucinogen did the Vikings use?
Ethnobotany, Fatur’s area of study, is the examination of a region’s plants and their practical uses through traditional knowledge. According to Fatur, “stinking henbane” the Vikings hallucinogen of choice can bring on feelings of delirium, inhibition loss, and manic episodes.
Are there any plants that are hallucinogenic to humans?
Hyoscyamus niger, henbane, is a member of the same plant family as potatoes, tomatoes—and deadly nightshade. The active ingredients—hyoscyamine, scopolamine, and others—are hallucinogenic. They can also cause drowsiness—the plant was sometimes used as an anaesthetic—and other symptoms up to and including death.
What kind of hallucinations does stinking henbane cause?
According to Fatur, “stinking henbane” the Vikings hallucinogen of choice can bring on feelings of delirium, inhibition loss, and manic episodes. It also triggers visual disturbances, hallucinations, drowsiness, and red-skin.
What was the cause of Berserker behavior in the Vikings?
Some botanists have claimed that berserker behavior could have been caused by the ingestion of alcohol, hallucinogenic mushrooms or the plant known as bog myrtle, one of the main spices in Scandinavian alcoholic beverages. Other more esoteric theories surround supernatural beliefs.
