'Longevity Medicine' discovered in a 2,000-year-old tomb in China

So what is it?

This liquid is actually a "longevity drug" that has been prepared since ancient times.

The copper jar was discovered last October by archaeologists excavating the crypt of a noble family in Henan Province, China. This 210-square-meter area in Luoyang city dates back to the Western Han period (202 BC to 8 AD), and a jar of remains has been discovered. quite intact of a noble, many pots of painted clay, materials made from jade and copper, and a lamp shaped like a goose.

Quite interestingly, the jar contains about 3.5 liters of yellow liquid with a very strong alcohol smell. At the time of the excavation, archaeologists thought it was alcohol - a conclusion quite in line with many of the findings dating back to the past. In the past, wine made from rice and sorghum was used in rituals and sacrifices.

But as Xinhua points out, after studying the liquid more closely in the lab, it was discovered that it was not alcohol. The liquid is primarily composed of potassium nitrate and alunite - the main ingredients of a . life-prolonging drug that was recorded in ancient Taoist texts.

" This is the first time this mysterious elixir has been found in China," said Shi Jiazhen, director of the Luoyang Institute of Archeology and Cultural Heritage - " This liquid has significant value for The study of ancient Chinese ideas on achieving immortality and the evolution of Chinese civilization ".

Of course, whether this potassium nitrate and alunite compound works as expected is no longer a question, as potassium nitrate is also used in the processing of meat, fertilizer, and fireworks, while alunite is used to produce alum - the latter used to pickled vinegar and baking powder. Alunite is benign, but potassium nitrate in high doses will cause many health risks, from skin and eye irritation, to kidney failure, anemia, and even death.

It is unclear if this liquid was actually created for the purpose of drinking, or just acts as a common burial in the home funeral rite. The only way to know for sure whether it really brings immortality is probably to . test on a human being. Does anyone volunteer?

Reference: Gizmodo