Was Shakespeare a Stoner? His Grave Could Hold the Answer (not Aristus)...

Almost 400 years after his death, a literary legend may get drug tested. A South African anthropologist has requested to open the grave of William Shakespeare to see if he can demystify the cause of the English dramatist's death—as well as determine whether or not marijuana was his muse, Live Science reports.

Turns out, there are signs that the man regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language puffed on pot. That's right: Long before the drug-laced works of Hunter S. Thompson and William S. Burroughs, Shakespeare inhaled before putting pen to paper. Or rather, feather quill to paper.

Francis Thackeray, the director of the Institute for Human Evolution at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, has proposed to dig up Shakespeare's grave—along with the resting places of his family—to see if the skeleton could determine the cause of the bard's death. Hair and keratin from fingernails and toenails could also reveal a pattern of drug use, while a chemical analysis of teeth could expose the use of tobacco or marijuana.

Experts have long speculated whether drugs played a role in Shakespeare's genius; many refer to the mention of a "noted weed" and "a journey in his head"—lines that appear in two different sonnets. For a study released in 2001, Thackeray discovered cannabis residue (along with cocaine) on clay pipe fragments found in Shakespeare's garden. Cannabis sativa, the plant from which marijuana is derived, was available in England during the Elizabethan era to make textiles, rope, paper, clothing and sails.

Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/06/28/was-shakespeare-a-stoner-his-grave-could-hold-the-answer/#ixzz1QcmvIYXd

:smoke:

What would Shakespeare think about our drug laws.

Blese be ye man yt spares thes stones and cvrst be he yt moves my bones

but Mr. Thackeray be trippin' for sure.