The cannabis plants were placed diagonally across the man's chest

tomb was found in the Jiayi cemetery in Turpan in northwest China

A prehistoric body has been discovered wrapped in a burial shroud crafted from cannabis for the very first time.

The 'extraordinary cache' of the psychoactive drug plant was uncovered in the Jiayi cemetery in Turpan in northwest China.

The fascinating find suggests that the drug may have been used in ancient rituals.

The 'extraordinary cache' of the psychoactive drug plant was uncovered in the Jiayi cemetery in Turpan in northwest China. The grave contains the remains of an adult Caucasian man, thought to be around 35 years old

THE STONED AGE Researchers say cannabis was first used around 11,000 years ago, with prehistoric humans in Europe and Asia both starting to experiment with the drug. However, it took another 6,000 years for the first dope dealers to emerge. It is often assumed that cannabis was first used, and possibly domesticated, somewhere in China or Central Asia. But a review of research papers has revealed tell tale signs of cannabis use, including pollen, fruit and fibres, in Japan and Eastern Europe at almost exactly the same time, between 11,500 and 10,200 years ago. The research, from the Free University of Berlin, suggests use intensified about 5,000 years ago, at the start of the Bronze Age. Advertisement

A research team from the Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing found a total of thirteen cannabis plants acting as a shroud in the ancient tomb.

The grave contains the remains of an adult Caucasian man, thought to be around 35 years old.

The body was laid on top of a wooden bed and a pillow made from reeds.

The cannabis plants were placed diagonally across the man's chest.

The researchers say that the plants, some of which were up to three feet (0.91 metres) long, were placed with the roots pointed down towards the man's pelvis, with tips pointing up past his chin.

Radiocarbon dating of the ancient tomb and its contents suggests that the burial took place between 2,400 to 2,800 years ago.

As the cannabis was lying flat across the body, the researchers concluded that it was fresh and therefore locally grown.

What's more, remains of flowering heads found on the plants appeared to be nearly ripe, leading the team to speculate that the it was probably gathered for the ceremonial burial in late summer.

'This unique discovery provides new insight into the ritualistic use of in prehistoric Central Eurasia,' said the researchers in an introduction to the paper published in the journal, Economic Botany.

As the cannabis was lying flat across the body, the researchers concluded that it was fresh and therefore locally grown

Some of the plants (right), were placed with the roots pointed down towards the man's pelvis, with tips pointing up past his chin. Some of the plants showed remains of flowering heads (right)

The 'extraordinary cache' of the psychoactive drug plant was uncovered in the Jiayi cemetery in Turpan in northwest China, shown on the map, pictured

Based on the discovery of smaller cannabis fragments in other graves at the site, the researchers concluded that: 'Cannabis was used by the local Central Eurasian people for ritual and/or medicinal purposes in the first millennium before the Christian era'.

The bizarre tomb is one of 240 graves uncovered at the Jiayi cemetery and is linked to the Subeixi culture that lived in the area around 3,000 to 2,000 years ago, reports National Geographic.

Turpan’s desert oasis made it an important stopping-off point on the Silk Road - the lucrative network of trade routeslinking China to the West.