In one case study, we looked at the content of incense burners and found a plant called Peganum. The common name is Syrian rue, and it’s a medicinal and psychoactive plant. So we realized that in these incense burners, specifically, people actually used it for therapeutic or psychoactive purposes. This was very interesting because the practice of incense burning seems to not only be sensorial but also have this medicinal component.
— Read more in Ancient Incense, Cosmetics and Mummies: Scientists Sniff Out the Scents of the Past at Scientific American.
