Picture this. You’re a cannabis farmer. Okay, maybe you actually are one, but stick with us. You’re a cannabis farmer 13,000 years ago. One cold morning you throw on a few pelts and trudge outside to tend to your crop, only to find a herd of Woolly Mammoths grazing in it, and a Saber-Toothed Cat ready to graze on the Mammoths. Yeah. The first marijuana farmers didn’t have to worry about government regulations, but they did have to worry about the dangers of the Ice Age. The point is, cannabis is old. Older, in fact, than wheat. Older than barley. Older than bitter vetch, whatever that is. Many thousands of years before people started referring to pot as an “evil drug,” it was being used for everything from medicine to boat sails to holy anointing oil.

THE BEGINNING, OR HOW WE OWE EVERYTHING TO THE ANCIENT CHINESE

In 2500 B.C., the tombs of noble people buried in China were found to contain mummified psychoactive cannabis. Archaeologists believe that the Chinese were the first people to harvest the plant, and that they used it in a myriad of ways, including as an anesthetic for surgery. The Chinese used the strong fiber to make textiles, rope, clothing, and paper. And the same plant that we now smoke for some relaxation and peace was once used by the Chinese to make bow fibers. Cannabis was once a weapon of war!

From China, the word about marijuana spread quickly. Chinese farmers started sharing it with the Koreans. Then an Indo-European group called the Scythians began using it to purify themselves when honoring their dead leaders. They Scythians, who traveled long distances by horse-drawn wagons, took cannabis all over Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. The Indians (who called it ghanja, meaning twisted rope) used it for anxiety, and the Greeks and Romans used it to get incredibly high.

Remember what we said earlier about cannabis being made into holy anointing oil? Well, you can actually find a recipe for that oil in the Bible. In Exodus 30:23, God instructs Moses to make the oil using myrrh, cinnamon, and Kaneh-bosom – otherwise known as cannabis. Yeah. Moses got blazed.

THE UNITED STATES, OR HOW CANNABIS BECAME PERSONA NON-GRATA

In the 19th century, cannabis arrived in South America, made its way north to Mexico, then reached the U.S. during the Mexican Revolution. There were many in the United States who welcomed cannabis. But there were many more who weren’t so enthusiastic. You see, this was a time in the U.S. when racial tensions between Americans and Mexican immigrants was very high (sound familiar?). And marijuana was viewed as a drug that was popular with Mexicans. You get the picture.

In 1937, the Marijuana Tax Act was created, subjecting anybody cultivating or consuming cannabis to fines of up to $2,000 and five years imprisonment. Then in 1952, the Boggs Act increased penalties for marijuana related offenses to a prison sentence of 2 to 10 years and a fine of up to $20,000. And in the 1970’s, as part of Nixon’s war on drugs, the Controlled Substances Act declared that marijuana was equal to heroin and LSD in its potential for harm and abuse, and the federal government would certainly treat it as such.

Of course, things are much different today. Legislation has turned in favor of cannabis. In 2012, our own state of Washington legalized recreational marijuana, and since then seven more states have done the same. A Gallup poll conducted in 2017 showed that 64% of Americans support legalization.

Now that you know its history, get better acquainted with cannabis by visiting our store for some stimulating goodies! Our friendly budtenders are here to answer any questions you may have, and to find the best strains for you. See you soon!