Thursday, August 30, 2012

Did William Shakespeare Use Marijuana?


Most of us today may doubt if the great English bard ever used it for legitimate medicinal purposes, but is there any proof that William Shakespeare ever used marijuana? 

By: Ringo Bones 

There had been some anecdotal evidence floating around since the 16th Century that William Shakespeare already used marijuana on a recreational basis a number of years before his marriage to Anne Hathaway of Stratford back in November 28, 1582. Well there’s even “rumors” that the 420 / April 20 global fraternity of marijuana users chose 420 / April 20 as an “auspicious date” because William Shakespeare’s true date of birth was believed to be on April 20, 1564. But the question now is: Are there any proof that William Shakespeare used marijuana for recreational and/or creativity enhancing purposes? 

Used and disposed of marijuana smoking paraphernalia – that looks and are made of 16th Century materials – were recently dug up (back in 2011) in the gardens of Shakespeare’s childhood home at Stratford-on-Avon in Warwickshire and on the New Place – the house with a matching large garden which Shakespeare purchased and renovated back in 1597 in Stratford from the money he earned from his literary and live dramatic works. Even though whether or not the great English bard actually used these discarded glass-made marijuana smoking paraphernalia will probably never be proven beyond the shadow of a doubt, radiocarbon dating test results have shown that they date from Shakespeare’s time. And they contain significant amounts of delta-9 tetra hydro cannabinol residue confirming that they are actually used for marijuana smoking purposes; which might explain the somewhat quirky and gripping nature of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.