Ancient California Cave Reveals 400-Year-Old Native American Drawing of Mysterious Hallucinogenic ‘Trance Flower’—What Secrets Does It Hold?
David RobinsonThe red pinwheel painted on the ceiling of Pinwheel Cave, with a glob stuck in a crevice in the lower left.
Robinson is also confident that the cave artists were likely sober when they drew the hawk moth. Doing so under the influence of scopolamine — which is still used today to combat motion sickness — would’ve been a challenge.
“It’s extremely unlikely because of the debilitating effects of Datura,” he explained. “I’ve never tried painting under the influence, but personally I think it would be difficult.”
He believes that the ceiling illustrations were essentially made to set the scene, just as religious artworks are found scattered about modern-day churches. Staring at the pinwheel drawing likely enabled participants to focus on a singular area as the drugs took hold — in a shared experience that grew into a tradition.
According to Science Mag, the Chumash people called these experiences “sacred dreams.”
YouTubeA Datura wrightii flower unfurls only at dusk and dawn and is pollinated by the hawkmoth.
The rock painting is located 90 miles northeast of Santa Barbara and was first discovered by workers of the Wild Wolves Preserve in 1999. The four-by-seven-inch illustration doesn’t look like a Datura to casual onlookers, but professional botanists would disagree.
They claim that the resemblance is stark when compared with an actual unfurling Datura viewed from above. This unfurling occurs only at dusk and dawn during pollination, perhaps an important time for the Chumash.
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