- [I] I guess [[child sacrifice in the Punic world]] isn't unique :( > [!quote] [Inca Children Drugged With Cocaine To Keep Them Calm Before Being Sacrificed, Hair And Nail Study Confirms](https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/06/inca-children-drugged-with-cocaine-to.html) via [[Archaeology News Network]] > > Inca children who were chosen to be ritually sacrificed were drugged so that they remained calm before their death, a new study of ancient hair and fingernail samples has confirmed. > > The human sacrifice, typically of children, known as capacocha, was generally conducted in Incan society to celebrate major events like the birth of a royal, or a battle victory, said the international team of scientists, including those from Peru, Poland, and the US. > > Archaeologists found that during the last weeks of the victims’ lives, they chewed on coca leaves and were intoxicated by ayahuasca, a beverage made primarily from the South American hallucinogenic flowering vine yage (or Banisteriopsis caapi). > > Researchers suspect the Incas may have consciously used the antidepressant properties of Banisteriopsis caapi “to reduce the anxiety and depressive states of the victims”. > > They said the children likely knew what was going to happen to them, weeks in advance, and may not have gone along willingly. > > Scientists suspect that while the drugs identified in the study may not have resulted in hallucinations, they could have calmed the children and made it easier to carry out the ritual. > > They found that she had been consuming considerable quantities of the mild Andean stimulant coca as well as alcohol. Researchers said her consumption rose temporarily six months before her sacrifice, likely at some major Inca ceremony.