Roman settlement in Netherlands yields bone stash of henbane seeds

Archaeologists discovered a 2,000-year-old storage container made from a hollowed animal bone containing hundreds of black henbane seeds at a rural Roman settlement in the Netherlands.

Intentional Storage of Black Henbane at Houten-Castellum

Researchers from the Freie Universität Berlin identified a stash of black henbane seeds inside a hollowed-out sheep or goat femur at the Houten-Castellum site. The bone cylinder, measuring approximately 7 centimeters long, was intentionally worked at both ends and sealed with a plug made of birch-bark tar.

The container originally held roughly 1,000 seeds, though researchers noted it could have accommodated several thousand if filled completely. This specific configuration distinguishes the find from other Roman sites where henbane seeds are present but may have spread naturally as weeds.

Dr. Maaike Groot, the lead author of the research, stated that because the plant grows naturally around settlements, seeds often end up in archaeological sites without human intervention.

“The find is unique and provides unmistakable proof for the intentional use of black henbane seeds in the Roman Netherlands,” Groot said.

Analysis of Plant Use and Medicinal Context

Black henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) is a psychoactive and narcotic plant related to tobacco and nightshade. While the seeds were found in a sealed container, the researchers ruled out the possibility that the bone served as a smoking pipe because there was no evidence of heating or charring on the seeds or the bone.

The intended use of the seeds remains undetermined. Researchers consider three primary possibilities: medicinal application, psychoactive use, or ritual purposes.

The study suggests a medicinal link by comparing the find to other Roman contexts. At a fortress hospital in Neuss, Germany, black henbane seeds were discovered alongside other plants including St. John’s wort, coriander, dill, vervain, common centaury, and fenugreek. This combination indicates that some Romans deliberately collected these plants for therapeutic reasons.

Ritual Deposition and Site Abandonment

The bone container was recovered from a water pit dating to approximately AD 70–100. It was found alongside fragments of a quern stone and part of a cow skeleton.

Researchers suggest these items may have been part of an abandonment offering. This practice involves making a deliberate deposit when a structure or site is taken out of use. While the act of depositing the bone in the pit may have had ritual significance, the researchers noted this does not prove the henbane seeds themselves were originally collected for a ritual.

Groot argues that future archaeobotanical finds of black henbane should be analyzed by examining the specific context of the find and its relationship to other known medicinal plants to better distinguish between weeds and intentional human use.